The Safe Place
by oathkeeper-girl
Summary: Aelita has a revelation, about The Safe Place. The Final Chapter.
1. When this Began

Kadic Academy was known as one of the safest places to be, and for a while, it was. It was the kind of place where you thought, "That could never happen to me," and for a while, you would have been right. Now, Kadic Academy was home to the most prestigious, hardworking students you could ever meet. The school looked exactly like the brochure advertised. A large brown building, tidy, and large black gates that circled it, bearing the school's name proudly. Of course you could understand that this school is very unordinary, not like any other at all. This is why our story takes place here. These gates were built to avoid any 'unwanted' company. This isn't disturbing naturally, for it makes complete sense. The unnerving part was the 'company' that Kadic had seen. If you were to walk up to a random student they would not say it was so, simply for the lack of memory. No, the group in particular to visit would be that of Ulrich Stern, Yumi Ishiyama, Jerimie Belpois, Odd Della Robbia, and Aelita Hopper. For only they truly had known and could tell you in full detail about the activity in the school. They had encountered just about everything together, a group of friends you could never seperate, and had seen things unlike on this world. Unlike seeing a UFO or a ghost, this was true, because what they had encountered was not on this world. Another world but also virtual. The name of the virtual world, Lyoko.

Lyoko, is the home of Aelita. I bet your head is spinning now right? Well, it wasn't simple. Aelita used to be a program in Lyoko. Jerimie had found a large supercomputer in an abandoned warehouse one day, and there along with it the beautiful girl, Aelita. It was here in the warehouse that Jerimie had found out about the secrets of Lyoko, and about the mysterious girl he had called Maya, for she knew not her name when he had restarted the computer. Although it had been a wonderful discovery, every situation, I'm sorry to say, is equally balanced with the bad, so it was also here where Jerimie had seen the work of the malicious program, XANA.

XANA was not just your everyday computer virus. XANA had a mind of his own, not only set on controlling Lyoko but also the real world. Through the activation of towers in Lyoko, it was possible. XANA could control other electrical devices and through them, someone on Earth. The Lyoko warriors, would transport to Lyoko during this time and deactivate the tower set off by XANA. All the while making sure to protect Aelita from XANA's monsters for she was the only one who could deactivate the towers. Afterwards, Jerimie could initiate the return sequence which took them back to the past and this was when they figured out no one but themselves could remember any of it. It wasn't long before Aelita had remembered her name and the more important things about where she lived. During the year Jeremie used to de-virtualize Aelita, they had become quite close. After Aelita had been introduced to Earth she began to attend Kadic as Odd's cousin.

Jeremie's and Aelita's friendship soon blossomed. The two were inseperable. Everyone had seen it coming. Jerimie hadn't been as attached to his computer then and Aelita became the center of his life. They were the best couple anyone could think of and Jerimie had benefited so much from the relationship, even the way he looked started to change. That was when Aelita had started to notice **the** change. Jeremie Belpois, for once in his life, was surrounded by girls. Maybe, it was his new hairstyle, or the fact that he started wearing contacts, or maybe even his change in wardrobe. It could be anything. Rumors were spread like wildfire when Jeremie had been holding Alora around her waist. Aelita was not stupid but she gave him the benefit of the doubt. She would only regret it sooner than later.

"Remember students, tonight's dance is for your enjoyment, we know you have all been working hard and the dance committee has been planning for a while..." A blond, spiky haired boy yawned in his seat.

"Man, can he talk or what?" he'd asked casually to his group of friends. A girl with black hair responded, "Oh, Odd I'd bet you'd much rather be sleeping right now, wouldn't you?" Odd smiled back at her, "You know me so well Yumi," he chuckled,"but honestly, I mean is an hour long speech necessary?" Ulrich glanced over at them smiling.

"It wouldn't be Kadic if Mr. Delmas didn't give us a rule book the size of the Bible." They all laughed at his statement because they knew it was true. They had stopped paying attention much like all the other students in the auditorium and started to conversate about the dance, everyone equally excited to go.

"So, Ulrich, you gonna' ask Yumi to the dance or am I gonna' have to do it?" Odd asked teasing the brunet.

"You're too late Odd," Yumi stated good-naturedly," he already asked." Odd smiled, shaking his head.

"Okay, well Yumi, you know where to go if you want some **real **fun." The three laughed at this.

Sissi turned around in her seat, the one in front of Ulrich of course, and smiled.

"Oh Ulrich my dearest," she began but never finished.

"Um, your a little too late Sissi," she immediately turned her head in the direction of Yumi,"I uh, already asked someone," he smiled.

"Hmph, well Ulrich my sweet if you change your mind I'm always available for you," she said blowing a kiss afterwards. As soon as she turned her head he pretended to gag.

When their own quiet laughter had died down, Ulrich asked where Aelita and Jerimie were. The other two shrugged.

"Together I assume."

"Yeah, you would think they would have been the first two here," Odd said simply. Yumi worried her lips, they had been acting strange lately. The two weren't around as much as they used to be.

Aelita smiled in Jeremie's arms. They were sitting on a stone bench in the forest in back of the school. She sat in his lap with his arms around her waist. Jeremie kissed her neck softly. It was cool outside, here underneath the large trees. The wind was blowing softly, for it was fall already, and blowing through the pink hair of the Lyoko girl. She closed her eyes letting it consume her. Jeremie smiled. She was beautiful. Her hair was wispy, beautifully soft, like her skin. Everything about her was irresistible to him. He knew he hadn't been around her much lately he also knew that it was getting to her. The blond boy played with her hair thinking to himself about what he could do to make her happy. Aelita stared up at him, tilting her head up, and kissed his cheek. He glanced down at her smiling.

"Hey, Aelita, do you wanna' go to the dance with me?" Aelita's eyes brightened visibly.

"Why Jeremie, are you sure? Really?" He nodded at her. "Of course! I would love to go!" she kissed him sweetly, but he pulled her in pushing their lips together forcefully making Aelita wince slightly. Her lips were still bruised from the last time he was so rough with her. She pulled back slowly. Aelita had a sweet taste that he could not get enough of.

"I'd better start looking for something to wear," she stood and turned to walk away. Jeremie grabbed her wrist and kissed her one last time. He waved as she left then got up and headed to his room.

"Hey, Einstein!" Jeremie turned to see the rest of the group walking towards him.

"Where have you and Aelita been, huh?" Odd questioned. Jeremie smiled at him.

"I didn't think you guys would have been so worried about us or else I would have told you, I was asking Aelita to the dance," he said casually," she went to her room, Yumi." Yumi faked a smile. She still did not feel right.

"Um, well I'll go check on her and see if she needs help. Later!" Yumi turned the corner and ran to Aelita's room.

"What's been up with her lately?" Jeremie asked the other two.

"Jeremie," they'd ignored the question completely,"we need to talk." With that said, Ulrich pulled the blond into his and Odd's room.

Jeremie was sitting on Ulrich's bed as he watched them sitting opposite of himself.

"Jerimie, I think it's time we had the talk," Odd started. Jeremie raised his eyebrows.

"The talk?"

"Yeah, you know, when a girl loves a guy, the birds and the bees, buns and ovens..."

"Woah woah, hold on I know about all that already," Jeremie said shaking his head.

"Well, you see, that's exactly our point," Jeremie looked at Ulrich.

"Okay, what are you getting at?"

"Well, seriously, you know more about it than Aelita, Jeremie, we don't want you trying anything on her." Jeremie rolled his eyes.

"Have I changed so much that you feel I would do that?" The other two looked at each other then back at him.

"Just watch yourself."

"That's a...different dress," was the first thing Yumi said when she walked into her and Aelita's room. Aelita looked over at her.

"Do you think Jeremie will like it?" she asked chewing her lip. Yumi looked her over once

Yumi looked me over once more. I could tell she was choosing her words carefully. The dress wasn't anything I was used to wearing. I knew it had to be the reason she was staring. It was a black, strapless dress. I was planning on going by myself to the dance when I had bought the dress. I had already figured Jeremie wouldn't want to go. I'd chewed my lip. This was all I could think of to attract his attention and keep it. She smiled a seemingly weary smile at me.

"Aelita," pause, "you look absolutely stunning but," another hesitated pause,"is that what you really want to wear?" I looked over myself. I honestly couldn't answer her, because I didn't know myself. I just smiled and nodded. This was supposed to be a night to remember. A night I didn't ever want to forget

A night she never wanted to forget, but as the saying goes be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it.

The girls readied themselves. Aelita could still remember each thing that happened that night. Vividly, it seems as if every time she would remember it, she relived it. The pink haired girl had applied some mascara, carefully curling her lashes. Then she applied eyeliner and a light shade of red lipstick. Aelita crossed over to a small wooden box that she kept her jewelry in and opened it, pulling out the silver necklace with a blue stone set in silver. It had been a gift from Jeremie, for no reason at all it seemed. She walked over to the closet and retrieved her black heels. After she had slipped them on, she went to the mirror, picked up her curling iron, and carefully curled her hair at the end. The two girls smiled happily at each other before heading out the door.

Kadic Academy was known as one of the safest places to be, and for a while, it was. It was the kind of place where you thought, "That could never happen to me," and for a while, you would have been right.


	2. In Media Res

Status: disclaimed by an amateur

Dedicated to: 2remember and Lostmoonchild

"Jeremie, stop!" it was a faint whisper in the night. The urgent tone was there, but it was lost even to her own ears. She could hear the music, just as loud as it had been in the

I could hear the music, just as loud as it had been when we were inside the gym. Now... now we are in Jeremie's room. I know now, very faintly, what awaits me. The memories are clouded over but I can't possibly forget. How could I? It was in the stares of everyone I passed by, it was in my reflection, my image. It consumed me. I am suffocating, drowning agonizingly slowly with each pitying look. My lungs filling with water rather than air each time I breathe.

"You are the one, the one that lies close to me, whispers 'hello, I miss you quite terribly' I fell in love in love with you suddenly," the stereo system was blasting Hellogoodbye. Strobe lights made the room darken and lighten quickly. Colorful lights hanging from the ceiling washed over every person. No one was seated. The gym floor was packed with students dancing. The Techno beats made it impossible not to. Every teen held a glow stick in hand. Bodies touched, and grinded with the beat.

"The dance committee did a great job huh?" Yumi asked Ulrich over the loud music.

"Yeah they actually did," he replied surprised the committee had done something cool for once.

"Oh my gosh, even more surprising, look to your right," she pointed out a couple dancing close. Ulrich did a double take. Was that really Herv...dancing with _Sissi_? Their faces were flushed from dancing so much but Sissi looked genuinely happy.

"Woah, I think that's the craziest thing I'll see all night." Yumi laughed at his remark.

"Jealous?"

"No," his face flushed. "Hey look at Jim," he said, successfully changing the subject. Yumi glanced over her shoulder. Jim was dressed in a tuxedo, his hair neatly combed for once and he was 'dancing'.

Now, step into the teens' shoes for a moment. Seeing an adult with no dancing skills whatsoever, dancing disco moves to Techno music could not possibly look well.

"Woah, no that's not even right," Odd said startling them both.

"Geez Odd! You scared the crap outta' me!" Odd was laughing hard.

"Ha, sorry Ulrich, haha, you shoulda' seen your face!"

"Where did you come from?" Yumi asked when she had composed herself.

"Oh, well I spotted you guys when I came in and saw what you guys were looking at, and apparently scared the hell out of you two," he smiled. "Oh by the way, have you seen Aelita?" Worry washed over Yumi once more. She explained how Aelita had walked in with her and told her she was going to look for Jeremie. Yumi looked around for her after a bit but could not find her so she called her, leaving a message. She had received no reply.

"Well I'll go look for her," Odd said flashing a peace sign before running off. Yumi looked over at Ulrich who shrugged his shoulders.

Odd ran out the door only to run into the girl he was looking for. He landed on top of her, as usual. The pink haired girl looked up at him.

"Hello to you too," she said smiling. Odd laughed lightly.

"Sorry princess," he said while helping her stand up. He looked her over before rubbing the back of his neck. "Um, I was just looking for you. Did you find Jeremie?"

"No not yet, sorry if I worried you."

"Yeah kinda, Yumi said she was calling and you didn't reply."

"Oh, tell her I'm fine but I didn't answer because I left my cell in the room."

"Sure thing. You look..." another once over,"amazing."

"Thanks, I wanted to look good for Jeremie, but seeing as I can't seem to find him..." she trailed off. Odd wrinkled his nose at the sentence.

"Right, have you checked his room?" Aelita's face brightened.

"No, I haven't, thanks Odd," that wonderful smile was flashed his way once more. Odd felt good knowing he could bring it to her face.

"By the way, Aelita," she stopped,"you don't have to try, you always look amazing." Another smile, a wave, and she was gone.

Jeremie didn't deserve her. He shook his head. Odd felt disgusting. Ever know a secret that puts you in a rough position? A secret you feel is ripping you apart inside? "Between

"Between you and me," those were his words. I couldn't exactly believe what I was hearing. He told me and I blanked.

"So, what were you doing with Alora anyway?" Ulrich asked first. I was lying back playing _Call of Duty. _I caught what they were talking about and sat up, throwing the controller to the side.

"Yeah, Jeremie, were you helping her with _homework_?" Of course, I was only teasing him but the response I got was more than just a tease.

"Yeah, she needed help with French..." Ulrich raised his eyebrows.

"She doesn't take French." Jereimie grinned mischievously.

"I didn't say French homework." Ulrich pressed on, still confused and I think for once I got something before him. "Between you and me, let's just say she can tie a cherry stem into a knot real well."

Odd stared up at the sky. "I should've said something." He kicked at the ground before walking back into the gym.

Aelita was standing in front of Jeremie's door about to knock when it opened. There stood the blond and a red head. Alora.

"Jeremie what," she started, but thought better of it. "You know what? You're not even close to worth it, I already knew. I just thought maybe I could give you the benefit of the doubt." Aelita turned on her heels but Jeremie grabbed her hand. Alora walked around and stood in front of him.

"I thought you said you were gonna' dump her." Aelita raised an eyebrow. Alora looked smug.

"If you think you're worth my time either, don't bother. Anyone who has to sneak around behind my back to get leftovers is a coward to me," the pink haired girl spat.

"At least I can keep him."

"Congratulations, because I am so jealous you have the reputation of school slut," Alora stepped back, the other girl had never uttered a harsh word before. "Oh and by the way, if he cheated on me he _will _cheat on you and I can promise you that." Jeremie grabbed Aelita's wrist, pulling her in the room, leaving a dumbfounded Alora in the hall.

He sat her on his bed trying to convince her it had all been nothing and Alora was just being stupid.

"Jeremie, I'm not an idiot. I would think you would at least tell me the truth instead of lie to my face."

"Listen Aelita, I swear I've never said I wanted to break up with you," he tryed to caress her face but she slapped his hand away.

"Leave me alone!" she stood, but he pushed her back down and forced a rough kiss on her lips.

"Jeremie, stop!" she protested. He pulled the strap of her dress over her shoulder. The blond leaned over and kissed her shoulder lightly. The music was pounding in her ears. She had found him. Now, she was regretting it.

In media res, is a Latin phrase literally meaning "in the middle of things." Our story takes place in media res, so here is where I end it. In media res.


	3. The Horrible Truth

Sorry for the late update! Enjoy!

My heart was pounding in my ears much like the music was before the only difference now was I wasn't listening. I wasn't even seeing. The halls were blurry and whether it was the tears pricking my eyes or the fact I was running so fast I was nearly tripping over my own two feet. I still can't tell. I was terrified out of my mind but I didn't have the time to be terrified. I screamed to calm myself a little. I knew no one would hear me but it was second nature. To scream when you're scared, it's like crying when you're hurt and I could finally tell I was doing both.

It was like watching a movie. One of those horror flicks where you yell at the girl on screen not to open the door but you know she's going to. I was in a dream state and I was just watching myself. I could see myself just sitting there, and I yelled at the top of my lungs subconsciously, telling my legs to move, my mouth to scream, my arms to flail. Nothing. I saw Jeremie's hand move to my legs. I could feel it then. His hand was cold and I shivered faintly under the touch. I found him, and I was regretting it. Jeremie pushed me onto my back and I think it was that moment my brain chose to register what was going on. He was hiking my dress up, reaching his hands under the fabric. Goosebumps scattered over my skin. Then his hands were on my underwear tugging slowly. Finally, I felt my arms fly up, pushing him back. He smirked at me. I was disgusted, how could the guy I was so in love with just a few days ago be so repulsing? I don't even know him. I stood up quickly but he pushed me back down and was on top of me in seconds. He held my arms over my head with one arm and the other tugging on my dress again. I struggled to free my arms in vain. I winced as he started to kiss my thighs.

"No! Stop!" I pulled my knees up and hit him directly in his chest. Jeremie rolled over in pain. I jumped up but he grabbed my leg and I fell onto the floor. He stood over me then grabbed me by my hair.

"Jeremie! What's wrong with you?"

"Would you stop with the nice girl thing already? Just give me what I want and I'll let you leave, 'kay?" His voice was husky and low.

"What are you talking about? Do you mean all this time, you've just been trying to have sex with me?"

"No shit, Sherlock. For a smart girl you sure are stupid. I don't know why I even bothered with you. Sure, at first I really did like you. You were the only girl that would give me the time of day. Then, other girls started to notice me and you weren't giving me what I needed so..."

"You found it somewhere else. You bastard! I actually loved you!" and as hard as I tried, for the life of me, I don't think even now I could've kept back the tears. My heart was breaking in the arms of the person I thought I loved. Two years wasn't something I could just throw away. Not like that. I felt dirty, used, and heartbroken. He still smiled at me though, like seeing my heart break was what he wanted this whole time.

I punched him. Without warning or a second thought. I pushed myself up off the floor and ran out. I could feel the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

Then I was here. Standing in the hallway. I could hear footsteps coming up about a flight away. I looked to my right and screamed when my hand connected with the glass cover of the fire alarm. It wasn't in pain or agony. I screamed because I felt this was my only hope. I felt as if I needed to let out all the pent up energy. My fingers wrapped around the lever and pulled without a moment's hesitation. I could hear the ringing in my ears and soon after, the footsteps running. Faster but fainter, that's when I realized they were going in thee opposite direction. I remember leaning, my back sliding down against the wall. My fingers trembled uncontrollably. I stared at them frightened out of my mind.

I don't remember how but I was on my feet after a minute and I ran down the stairs, praying he wasn't around the corner or lurking in the shadows. A pair of glass doors came into my view. I pushed through them easily but continued to run. I feared stopping because I knew if I did, my thoughts would drown me. All I could do was run.

I began to see teachers run past me. I wanted to stop, to ask for help, but I couldn't. Students passed me and I still wouldn't stop.

"Aelita!" My name. Someone was calling my name. "Aelita, wait!" I felt hands on my shoulders. I freaked.

"Get your hands off me! Don't touch me!"

"Aelita, it's me, Yumi! Are you okay? What happened?" I broke from her grasp. I could hear her running after me. "Slow down!" she begged. I didn't. I don't know what I was running away from. My head was far gone. I just didn't want to be hurt anymore. Every fiber of my being was aching.

I couldn't get to the gymnasium fast enough. Exhaustion started to creep over me and I felt someone grab me as I collapsed to the ground. Fear consumed me to my core and it seemed the ground rushed to meet me. My head met the ground first.

"Aelita!" Yumi pushed herself to reach the girl. She saw the pink haired girl fall to the ground. She could just make out the outline of a figure holding onto her. "Odd, is she okay?"

Heh I like how this story is coming along, and I would appreciate any comments. Love you all who are reading this!3 Anyone can drop a review even if anonymous so go ahead I want to hear what you think 'kay?


	4. What I Deserve

A/N: My faithful readers, you deserve an explanation. I am really sorry for this extremely late update but my cell was on the fritz and it just so happens it is the only thing I can update on. Again my sincerest apologies and I absolutely love you guys for the reviews. You guys made me laugh. This chapter is dedicated to all of you who read and support this story, you guys are the best. So enough of my talk cause I don't like long a/n's either and enjoy this chapter cause you deserve it. 3

"Nnngh..." What am I doing on a merry go round? Oh, the room is just spinning really really fast. That makes it better. I clutched my head in my hands and closed my eyes. I noticed a dull throbbing start up in my right hand. I opened my eyes after another minute and my vision was steadied. I became aware of my surroundings. That's when it hit me. It didn't come flooding back, the memory, but instead came piece by piece. That was torture. I was reliving every moment again, slowly. I tried to focus on the room, where had I seen it before? I inspected my right hand. Neatly bandaged. I looked around the room. I'm in the infirmary.

"Ugh..." Odd sat up in his bed slowly. He couldn't sleep the night before, how could he? They wouldn't let him stay with her. He and Yumi had taken her all the way to the infirmary yet they had to be questioned? That's what the nurse and the officers said. They had the damn nerve to say _he _needed to be questioned. Why would he carry her all the way to the infirmary if he hurt her? He opened his eyes and sighed. The officers had questioned him and Yumi for at least an hour. Asking questions like they were the ones who hurt her. Odd kept his cool when they asked if he had seen anything, been with her that night. He wouldn't have helped anyone by snapping. The one that really got him, "Could you tell us what your relationship was like with Ms. Stones?" Sure, it had gotten out that Aelita wasn't really his cousin but that didn't mean he loved her less. He loved her like a sister...yeah that's how it was supposed to go. A sister. Nothing more. Aelita loved Jeremie and that's how it was supposed to go. The end. No. Fuck that. She deserved much better. Jeremie is a jerk and...

"He hurt her." It came out in a soft mutter. She was supposed to be with Jeremie last night. This doesn't make any sense. A soft knocking on the door interrupted his thoughts.

"It's open!" Yumi came in wearing a tired look on her face. 'Guess she got about as much sleep as I did' he thought to himself.

"You okay?" I looked up and smiled at her.

"I'm not the one you should be concerned about." She gave me this weak smile, looked at the ground, and sighed.

"How could we have let this happen?" That was the first time I saw Yumi cry. She looked up at me and I could see the tears slowly begin to fall. I had to look away. Yumi is so much stronger than me, emotionally at least, and to see her cry would only break me further.

"Where's Ulrich?" I asked, changing the subject. She wiped her face on her palms.

"I don't know actually," she pondered. Odd crossed the room and wiped her face.

"Maybe they'll let us see Aelita now." She smiled and hugged me.

"Let's go."

"Jeremie, what the hell did you do?"

"Ulrich, I already told you I know as much about this as you do." So he already has his story straight. "I walked Aelita to her room, watched her go in, and left. She was just fine when I left her." He smiled. I snapped. I grabbed him by his collar.

"Listen, if you think for one fucking second I'm buying that shit you better think twice. I know you were the one who left her like this and I swear I'll find out what you did and beat the fuck out of you when I do!"

"Not like you're gonna' find anything, I didn't touch her, you know how she is." There it was. That stupid smirk again. So I gave him what he deserved.

"Yeah, did you hear, Stern kicked Belpois's ass! Dude, it was awesome!"

"I heard he slammed him into the wall then punched him in the face a couple times!"

"You know why he did it though right? He thinks Jeremie was the one that did that to Aelita. Stern said S.O.S if he finds out Belpois did it." Enter Sissi.

"Gossip sure gets around fast, tell me more about what happened, hm?"

"Nurse Yolanda can we please go in and see Aelita?" Nurse Yolanda looked at Yumi and Odd, smiling.

"Sure, please don't wake her if she is resting but you are welcome to stay with her awhile." They nodded and quietly opened the door to the infirmary.

"Odd! Yumi!" Aelita was sitting up on the cot with a smile on her face. The two teens rushed up to her and began asking her so many questions she felt as if her head were spinning again.

"Woah! Slow down!"

"Are you feeling okay?" Odd asked first.

"Much better actually. Wow, I didn't know I made you guys this upset."

"You could never upset us Aelita. We were just very worried about you, that's all," Yumi comforted. Aelita ran a hand through her hair.

"You guys are the best friends a girl can have." Odd sat on the edge of the cot and grabbed her hand.

"I'm just glad you're okay. You really scared us."

"I'm going to find Ulrich and bring him so he can see you 'kay?" Yumi excused herself and left. Odd pulled Aelita into his lap and held her tightly. God the things you do to me he thought.

Aelita looked up at me in surprise but I couldn't hold it back any longer.

"Odd?"

"Aelita, I'm so sorry I let this happen to you." I know she can feel how tense I am. She put her arms around my neck and buried her face into my neck.

"You didn't do this to me Odd, don't apologize." I could feel her lips brush against my lips as she murmured. I looked down at her. Why did she have to be the one to her hurt?

"Please tell me what's troubling you Odd," she had her mouth up to my ear and was whispering softly.

"Aelita...I need to know what happened to you last night." I picked up her right hand and kissed it softly. I needed her to know I was there for her. She looked at me for a moment and I couldn't read the expression on her face. She stood and turned away from me.

"Please don't make me relive it again."

Disclaimer: Nope don't own but hey we got this story!

A/N: A little bit of Odd and Aelita for ya hope you enjoyed. Thanks again to all my kind reviewers! I know I'm getting sick of Jeremie too so he got a bit of what he deserves in this chapter from Ulrich but yes we will get a battle of the blondes later. I don't wanna spoil it. Thanks again and much love. c:


	5. It Beats for Only You

Disclaimer: Still don't own Code Lyoko, but you have this story so please enjoy. c:

I stood and turned Aelita toward me.

"Listen, we just want to help you but we can't do that until you tell us what happened." Her eyes looked pained for a moment and then she sighed.

"Leave." I stood frozen, did I hear that right?

"Excu-," she cut me off.

"Leave, now!" I stepped towards her. Aelita stepped back. I reached out to her and she flinched away from me. "Odd I said leave! I don't want to see you!" Ouch. I think I felt my heart break. I nodded slowly. This wasn't happening. It couldn't be. I paused in the doorway for a moment then left. I walked out of the infirmary, past all the students walking the opposite direction, through the double doors, and past the school building. I looked up at the gates surrounding me. She doesn't want to see me. That was my last thought as I walked out of the "security" of the school and into the woods.

What did I do? I feel stupid. I can't trust them. Not anymore. I can't let anyone get near me. They'll only hurt me like **he** did. What was that he said? Before he left. He stood in the doorway and said,

"Real friends don't hurt you...Yeah, well, sorry to disappoint but I no longer have friends." It was like acid on her tongue. She had no friends and the realization hit her for the first time.

"I'm alone."

Ulrich was looking up at the ceiling. How could Jeremie expect him not to do anything. The group hadn't spent two years fighting for Aelita's life for nothing. He ran his hands through his hair. She was like a little sister to him. He couldn't just not care. Ulrich hadn't expected something like this to happen. Not in a million years. They were all the best of friends. How could things go so wrong?

Jeremie was the last person he expected to hurt Aelita. It was supposed to be Jeremie and Aelita, Yumi and Ulrich, the perfect couples. A happily ever after. 'That's not exactly how it worked out', he thought. A soft rapping came from his door. He went and answered only to see a grinning Sissi in his doorway.

"Sissi?" He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Word's out Ulrich." Now he was even more confused. She dropped her smile. "Can I come in?" He opened the door wider so she could pass then closed it quickly. "Ulrich, everyone's starting to question what went down during that dance. What happened to Aelita?" His phone went off in his pocket but he ignored it.

"I can't tell you-"

"Why? Is there something you're not telling the authorities? Ulrich what's going on?"

"I can't tell you 'cause we don't even know what happened ourselves... Your father told you to question me didn't he," It was a statement not a question and her eyes widened. He looked up at her.

"Yes, but only because there's something going around the school. A rumor has made its way around," she paused," that you beat up Jeremie." She looked at him intently. Studying him carefully. Ulrich's features and body language gave away nothing.

He hesitated, then,"Aelita was with Jeremie the night of the dance. They were together and no one saw anything," he heard his own voice quaver.

"Ulrich I didn't come here to get you into any trouble. I came to help. I convinced my dad that there was a good reason for all this and he agreed to let me talk to you to find out what it was." Now she looked troubled. Ulrich stared at her for a moment before she continued. "If we can't prove Jeremie did cause all this, I'm afraid he'll have to expell you." Ulrich's heart sank. Great, more pressure. 'I got myself into this', he thought, 'but if Sissi's willing to help they must believe me.'

"Sissi, I never thought I'd say this but, thanks." She gave him a small smile.

"No problem, but we need to find out what happened as soon as possible, because everyone is starting to get tense." Yumi knocked and entered.

"Hey I've been-" Yumi stopped mid-sentence. "Hi, Sissi. Um." Ulrich looked towards her and smiled.

"Yumi, Sissi is gonna' help us found out what happened." Yumi gave the other girl a warm smile.

"Thanks."

Aelita stood in the middle of the infirmary. She was alone. The silence was thick with her own tension. Tick, tick, tick. TICK! TICK! TICK! The clocks seconds became more and more audible. Growing louder and louder with each tick. They echoed and reverberated throughout her mind. Thump, thump, thump, Thump, THUMP, THUMP! She fell to her knees and threw her arms over her ears. The pain came back in her right hand. She felt the sharp pain that she had partially felt the night before and in the morning. No longer was it a dull throb. Aelita ran over to the glass cabinets. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP!

She tried opening them, but they were all locked. She pulled with all her strength, ignoring the pain in her hand, but they held fast.

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP!

The noise was faster and louder than before. It blended seamlessly with the constant ticks of the clock.

TICK, THUMP, TICK, THUMP, TICK!

At some point she became aware that she was beginning to hyperventilate. Aelita felt the walls inching in closer. She felt her arm raise slowly.

THUMP! THUMP! TICK! TICK!

The dizzy feeling returned with a wave of nausea. What was happening to her? Finally, she curled her fingers into a tight fist and broke the glass. Bottles fell everywhere. She grabbed the nearest one and popped open the cap.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! TICK! TICK! TICK!

It wouldn't stop! She dry swallowed three of the pills before the room span out of control and she passed out. The thumping stopped.

Nurse Yolanda entered and screamed at the sight. The room was a bloody, glassy mess. She ran over to Aelita and quickly picked up the bottle in her hand. A bottle of morphine.

A/N: So... Good news: Sissi is helping

Bad news: Odd is gone and Aelita...yeah. Reviews?


	6. Confrontations

"She should be fine. I gave her a bit of Naloxone. She's lucky I showed up when I did. Any later and her breathing would have stopped completely," Nurse Yolanda explained to Yumi and Ulrich calmly. Yumi had come back to the infirmary with him after their little talk. They weren't allowed in and barely now, an hour later, was Nurse Yolanda able to explain what happened.

"What's Naloxone?" Yumi asked, visibly worried for her friend.

"It's a drug that will counteract the morphine overdose-"

"She overdosed on morphine?" Ulrich choked.

"Do you think it was intentional?" Yumi asked. "Maybe she was in pain."

"Actually, it looked like it happened pretty fast. Many of the pill bottles were knocked on the floor, all closed. It seems she chose at random."

"One last question Nurse Yolanda, did you see Odd leave before this happened?"

"No, I must have still been talking with Mr. Delmas in his office. He wants to know what happened that night too."

Ulrich and Yumi exchanged looks. Nothing made sense. They thanked the nurse and made their way to Ulrich's room. Silence had settled over them. They were so absorbed with their own thoughts they hadn't noticed all the strange looks the other students were giving them.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Sissi, meanwhile, was on the way to her father's office. The hallway was empty, classes had been canceled for the last two days. The Aelita incident had surely made its way around by now. All the students still couldn't find out what had happened. The only ones who knew were Aelita and Jeremie. Neither was speaking but Sissi knew Jeremie wasn't worried. He tried to make himself look like the victim actually, after Ulrich had beat him up. Sissi felt disgusted. How could he pretend nothing happened? Sissi turned the corner only to run into Alora. Her ex-best friend. Sissi knew what Alora did. No one knew what had happened that night but everyone knew Alora was also there that night and there was something she wasn't telling. Sissi dropped her bag and Alora dropped her books.

"Sorry, I wasn't looking-" she cut herself off. Sissi picked up her bag.

"When do you? Watch where you're going that is. Just can't stop running over people, can ya?" Sissi smiled bitterly. Alora stepped back.

"Ouch. Suddenly become the heroine Sissi? You don't even like that pink haired freak anyway." Alora twirled a red curl around her finger, feigning innocence.

"So, you really don't know or are you just an idiot? Aelita is in the infirmary and she is my friend. It is also your fault she's hurt. Everyone knows you were Jeremie's date for the dance." Alora's mouth fell open.

"How did you know that?" Sissi smiled a wicked smile.

"Honey, nothing gets around me. Don't you remember? Anything happens, I'm first to know. So now tell me what happened that night or you will regret it altogether." Alora looked down at her boots. When she looked back up, tears threatened to spill over.

"You don't think I regret it already. I'm sorry, okay? I didn't know anything bad was going to happen to her. I never meant to hurt her. Jeremie said he had broken up with her two days before the dance. I thought she was just mad he was with me now. But that night," her lip trembled," he took her into their room. I heard them yelling for a minute and then nothing. I thought maybe he had calmed her down and he was explaining to her so I left. Then the teachers were running and I panicked." The tears were falling fast now. "They asked me what happened and I tolls them nothing! Nothing! I heard what happened and I said nothing!" She screamed out. Sissi stood silently.

"Well now is the time to do something about it. Crying and feeling bad for yourself won't fix anything."

"But, I practically did this to her! I didn't want to hurt her Sissi you have to believe me!" Sissi tried to sort everything out in her head.

"Come with me. You have to tell my dad what you heard. It's the only way you can help her." Alora nodded. Sissi grabbed her hand and pulled her along. The principal's door came into view. She let go of Alora's hand.

"Don't hold back." They stepped in. Mr. Delmas looked up from his work.

He acknowledged them before inviting them in. Sissi explained briefly her talk with Ulrich and Yumi.

"Ulrich really did have a good reason father. I've even got proof that their accusation isn't just a guess." She stepped back and looked at Alora.

"So, you and Mr. Stern have reason to believe Jeremie Belpois, my top student need I remind you, has caused all this?" He removed his glasses and rubbed his temples.

"Mr. Delmas, sir, it's true. I... I witnessed some of what happened that night." Mr. Delmas looked up questioningly. Alora took a breath and started to explain.

xXxXxXxXxXxXx

Odd grabbed his skateboard and jumped on. He had made his way to the factory and he didn't know how. His legs had just carried him there. Their group had been going there for three years now. Two of those years Aelita spent with Jeremie. He pushed the thought back. No matter how hard he tried his thoughts always came back to her. Odd stopped at the ladder, put his skateboard to the side, and climbed up. He ran the rest of the way without a thought. Before jumping on the rope, he tugged on it to make sure it was strong enough to hold him after all this time. Once he reached the elevator he stopped. Why would he come all the way here? He closed his eyes. A vision flashed behind them. Strange. That only happened on Lyoko. Images of what had happened to Aelita earlier that day flashed behind his eyelids. He clutched his head.

"I've gotta'-" The elevator opened its doors to him suddenly. Odd looked up. Jeremie stepped out.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Disclaimer: Moon+Scoop= Not mine.

A/N: I noticed my page breaks weren't coming out so I had to make some. Ohh, man. Odd and Jeremie confrontation. I hate cliff hangers. Did you get the title of chapter 5? It beats for only you. Her heart beats for Odd. What happened when he left? Yeah, symbols gotta love 'em. Rkofan, when you say you didn't like chapter 5 do you mean what happened in the chapter? Odd Della Robbia Purple, I know! I felt bad writing it cuz I like Odd too. But don't worry, it'll get better I promise. The next chapters are gonna be bumpy though. Will you guys stick around for the ride?

Reviews are welcome from all.


	7. Battle of the Blondes

My eyelids opened slowly. The light flooded my senses along with every corner of the room. I could hear a faint beeping to the right of me. I turned my head in the direction of the noise. A heart monitor stood over me, its screen displayed my information proudly. I sighed. I would never get out of here if I kept harming myself. 'The first time wasn't my fault.' The thought crossed my mind bitterly. I sat up and grabbed the chart off the edge of my bed. 'Aelita Stones,' it read, 'age: sixteen, injury: multiple lacerations on the right hand and bruises along the torso. Recent: Overdose on Morphine. ID no. 57893016...' I put it down. Morphine, oh the irony. I certainly don't feel any pain at the moment. I walked to the counter and inspected it. Yup. I broke it alright. So I hadn't been dreaming. The glass was all long gone but the pane that once held it remained empty.

I walked to the restroom wondering why, after all the incidents I caused, they hadn't made an orderly watch over me. I only drew one conclusion: the school is cheap. I looked at myself in the mirror. A pale face stared back at me. I realized all the color was drained from my skin, not just my face. Dark circles had formed under my eyes and my lips seemed set into a frown. I turned the warm water faucet halfway then, with my left hand, splashed it onto my face in an attempt to gain back the color. I stepped out after drying my face and looked around for my clothes. They were folded on a chair, neatly, across from where I was standing.

I picked up my clothes and remembered I only had what I came in with. My dress had been washed sometime during the two days of incidents, probably yesterday. I don't remember having seen it before I passed out. I had to keep thinking about insignificant things just to feel somewhat sane.

I continued distracting myself and searched around for some scissors. I found a pair discarded haphazardly in a drawer. I cut the dress in half. I didn't need it anyway. It would just remind me of the dance and everything that went wrong. I shook my head and continued with my task. After thoroughly shredding it, I stood, threw it away, and walked out.

The linoleum floor felt cold under my bare feet. I continued walking to my room, the halls were eerily empty. I listened to the sound of my footsteps as I made my way. I stood in front of my dorm room and smiled. My world had been turned upside down yet nothing had changed.

My room felt cold and unwelcoming. I shivered. I grabbed some skinny jeans, and a white tank from my closet. I walked quietly over to the showers and threw the gown I had been wearing off. The shower filled with steam as soon as I turned on the warm water. I was happy to feel the it on my skin. After the shower, I dressed, went back to my room, threw on some shoes and grabbed my cell. Lucky me, it's still fully charged.

I called Yumi. Turns out, it's nine in the morning. Apparently people don't like being woken up at that time. Oops. When she realized it was me I could hear her shift and her tone agreed to meet in ten minutes and hung up.

"Aelita!" Yumi hugged me as soon as I walked in. Ulrich breathed a sigh of relief behind her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I've been better but...fine, just fine."

"We heard about your little incident in the infirmary," Ulrich was choosing his words carefully. Great, now I feel terrible.

"Yeah." I'm at a loss for words. I followed their gaze to my arm. I had re-bandaged it neatly after my shower. I tucked it behind my back.

"It's worse than it looks," I lied. An uncomfortable silence began to settle.

"Aelita, what happened?" I sighed. There was no getting around it.

"The night of the dance I..." I sat down. "I have to tell Odd first. Where is he?" I was suddenly alarmed. I hadn't seen him since I'd said, since I said I didn't want to see him.

"Come to think of it," Yumi paused to think," I haven't seen him." I looked to Ulrich.

"Neither have I."

"We have to find him! I- I didn't mean it!"

"Aelita, calm down! What are you talking about?"

"I told Odd I didn't want to see him! I swear I didn't mean it!" I pulled my cell out of my pocket and hit speed dial for Odd. Ulrich and Yumi grabbed theirs and looked toward me. I shook my head.

"He's not answering. Please Odd pick up!" Voicemail.

"Okay, Yumi check around the school. I'll look on the school grounds." Ulrich demanded.

"I'll go to the factory." Ulrich gave me a worried look.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, let's go! Call if you find anything."

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Yumi searched the halls of the school looking for a even a glimpse of purple but the halls were still abandoned. Not a person in sight. She checked each floor but her efforts were fruitless, of course. She called Ulrich whose search had also been in vain. They agreed to meet up and find Aelita on her way to the factory.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

I tried calling Odd again but there's no signal out here. Strange. I could've sworn the signal was just fine out here. I broke out into a run. Please be okay.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Odd."Jeremie acknowledged him quietly.

"If it isn't Einstein, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question, but to tell you the truth, I don't care." He stepped forward. Jeremie watched him carefully. If he was scared, he didn't show it. But Odd knew better. "Me? I ran away. You really messed things up this time." He stepped forward again. "Aelita, she's not taking this as well as you or I, but that's to be expected right?" Jeremie was at a loss for words. Ulrich was fun to mess with when he was mad. All he had to do was hold a smirk. Odd, he was different. His eyes looked darker almost unfeeling. Every word he said had a touch of venom to it. It sent icy chills down his spine. Odd had this cool look about him. His face seemed neutral. That scared him the most. At least with Ulrich, he knew what would happen. Odd gave away nothing.

"So are you like best friends with her now or something?" Jeremie's voice faltered. Odd smirked. He didn't like it.

"Or something. Actually, she hates me now." Jeremie relaxed visibly. He could still get Odd on his side. Just a few mind tricks...

"I thought I warned you she was a tease," he started cautiously," she doesn't like anyone here. She's pretty wicked. She'll mess with your head Odd." His confidence was returning. Odd looked at him still holding a pokerface. "She used me. The night of the dance, she tried to look like she was the victim. You really think I would hurt her?" He stepped towards Odd. "She lied." His voice echoed throughout the factory. " Aelita had it all planned out." Odd looked down. Suddenly he lunged at Jeremie and pinned him to the wall.

"I don't like people messing with my mind Jeremie. It doesn't sit well with me. And you, well you just played all the wrong moves." Jeremie smirked.

"So you fell for her too. Yeah she's a bitch." Odd slammed Jeremie's head on the wall.

"You better hope to God someone comes and stops me." With that he threw Jeremie to the ground. Jeremie stood up. Odd lunged forward and punched him in the stomach. He fell to his knees. Odd kicked him down.

"Don't feel so powerful now huh? Beating up on girls fun for you Belpois?" He pulled Jeremie's face up to look at him. "How does it feel fighting someone who actually puts up a fight?" Jeremie reached behind himself. He used the rest of his strength and stood. The setting sun glinted off the black metal. He pointed it at Odd's chest.

"The thing about that, is that in the end, I always win."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Disclaimer: I don't own Code Lyoko.

A/N: I promised it. So here it is. Battle of the blondes. Is Aelita going to get there in time?

Reviews are appreciated.


	8. No One Would Miss Me

Jeremie stepped away from Odd, who was watching him carefully. The factory was completely silent. Odd stuck his hands in his pockets.

"What's wrong Della Robbia? Nothing left to say now huh?" Odd stood coolly.

"So you think I'm scared, is that it? Jeremie, there isn't anything you could do right now that would make me feel any worse. Do it, pull the trigger. I'm ready. Here I'll help." To Jeremie's surprise, Odd moved towards him. He wrapped his hands around the gun in Jeremie's hands and pulled it to his own chest. Jeremie's eyes widened. Odd could feel the other teen's hands shaking. Odd closed his eyes and sighed.

"Thought so."

"Don't test me Odd, I will do it."

"I'm not so sure. You don't sound too confident there, Belpois." Jeremie furrowed his eyebrows. He gripped the gun tighter so his knuckles turned white.

"Always so cocky huh, Odd? You get everything you want and that's still not enough-"

"Are you kidding me? Yeah, you're right, I'm so good, I get everything I want. That's why the girl I've been in love with for three years now hates me." Odd kept his fingers on the trigger. "Just do me the favor, pull it, not like anyone will care."

"Gladly."

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Aelita! Slow down!" Yumi and Ulrich caught up with Aelita and when they told her they had found nothing she broke into a sprint. They couldn't catch up and had lost sight of her at least twice. Aelita climbed down the ladder and only then did she stop.

"Guys, this is all my fault! He wouldn't be gone if it weren't for me! I was frustrated, angry and I took it out on him. I can't slow down because I'm scared! I don't want anything to happen to him, I couldn't live with myself if something did be- because, I- love him! I love him and it hurts. I didn't want to trust him. I thought he would hurt me so I hurt him first." Aelita clutched her head in her hands. Yumi smiled a bittersweet smile.

"Well let's go, we're wasting time here." Aelita nodded. She grabbed her skateboard off the wall. The whole ride there she thought about Odd. She couldn't help it. He was the one who convinced her to ditch the scooter she used to ride. They agreed she was way too old to still be riding one. He taught her how to ride a skateboard.

"_Aelita it's not hard at all. Look, I'll show you." Odd hopped onto his board and skated back and forth._

_"Even that looks too hard for me," she laughed._

_"Well that's all you need to know for now and trust me, it's super easy. All you gotta' do is balance." He smiled at her. She shrugged._

_"Alright, lets do it. How hard could it be?" He helped her step onto his board. She wobbled forward and he caught her. "Okay, definitely not my thing." He laughed._

_"All you need is a little practice." A couple of hours later she was zooming back and forth in front of him. He grinned. "Told 'ya." Aelita hopped off and hugged him._

_"You're amazing! This is so much fun!" Odd hugged her back._

_"I didn't do anything, you did all the work."_

_"Don't be so modest! Odd Della Robbia, you are the best!"_

_"Yeah, well." She pulled back._

_"Wait till I show Jeremie! He'll be amazed!" _

_"Yeah, Jeremie, of course," he muttered. Aelita hadn't noticed._

_"Hey, Odd? I'm cold, can I borrow your hoodie?" The smile returned to his face. _

_"Of course, Princess." He pulled the grey half-hoodie off and gave it to her. _

Of course, Jeremie wasn't amazed. He was glued to his computer. He didn't care at all. I don't think he even noticed I was talking to him. Jeremie never let me borrow his sweater. That's not what's bothering me though. All the signs were there. The signs that I no longer felt the same interest for Jeremie. The signs I liked Odd and the signs he liked me. Gosh, I'm stupid. Even in my state, I should have known he would never try to hurt me.

_He pulled me into his lap and I looked up at him in surprise. I buried my face in his neck. I could feel my face heat up. 'I've never felt like this before,' was all I could think. He kissed my hand, lightly. My wounded hand felt cooler, no longer on fire. He never ceases to amaze me._

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Aelita was blushing profusely the whole way. What exactly happened the day of the incident, was all I could wonder. Odd taught her how to skate too well. She's going way faster than me and Ulrich. We turned the last corner and sped up. I hope we find him.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

I hopped off my skateboard and placed it along the wall. I smiled.

"Guys! Odd's skateboard is here! He was here!" I couldn't help but shout. Yumi and Ulrich stopped alongside me for a momemt before we all rushed up the ladder and ran over to the ropes. I could hear voices. I slid down first.

"Just do me the favor, pull it, not like anyone will care."

"Gladly." Odd twisted Jeremie's arm around. He grabbed the gun from his hand and put it to his own head.

"Actually, I'll just do you the favor."

"ODD!"

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

I looked up.

"Aelita?" I dropped the gun. Jeremie wasted no time. He grabbed it and aimed it at my chest again.

"Not one more step or else..." Aelita looked at me. Yumi and Ulrich were behind her. They all looked horrified at the scene that was unfolding. I finally lost my cool.

"Jeremie, wh- whatever you do, don't- don't hurt them."

"Aww. What's wrong Odd, afraid I'll hurt your little princess?" He turned and pointed the gun at Aelita. Ulrich stepped forward.

"Jeremie, stop! Put it down now!"

"Look at Ulrich, always trying to be the hero."

"Ulrich's right, Jeremie. This is crazy. I don't know why you're doing this but you don't have to."

"Both of you, shut up!" I looked to Aelita. She's here, why is she here? I don't believe this. "I'll let you guys go on one condition," he said.

"And what would that be?" Aelita spoke up.

"Aelita, when we get back to school you have to tell the principal and the authorities that the night of the dance, I didn't do anything to you." His eyes were shining. I felt sick. Aelita looked down.

"And you'll let Odd go?" He smirked.

"But of course." I looked at her in alarm.

"No. Aelita don't agree to anything. You have to say what happened." Aelita looked from me to him. Then, the words I longed to hear from her, for the longest, came in a whisper.

"Odd, I love you."

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Disclaimer: Nope. Still don't own it.

A/N: Wow. This chapter is pretty long so I'm breaking it in two. Thoughts? Put 'em in a review! They are very much appreciated.


	9. I Would

Part II Enjoy! XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Odd, I love you." Okay, I must be hallucinating. I blinked, stupefied. It was barely above a whisper and I know it was only meant for me to hear.

"Well?" Aelita shook her head.

"First, why don't you let me tell what it is exactly that I'll be hiding."

"Nuh-uh. Don't breath a word." He was firm. I watched in awe. She was standing up for herself. Her eyes were fiery. She swallowed.

"Jeremie tried to rape me." Everyone was silent. I could feel my eyes widen.

"Aelita-" Yumi started. Aelita looked me directly in the eyes.

"No, I need to tell you what happened." She looked at Jeremie and smiled. "Jeremie said he was the victim. Well now we know that's not true. He asked me to the dance that night and you guys remember how I couldn't find him right? Turns out, he was with Alora," she chuckled darkly,"they were also together that night, alone in his room, but for some weird reason Jeremie thinks I'm stupid enough to believe nothing happened!"

"Aelita, stop now. Don't you think you've hurt our friends enough? Just give-" She looked at him with a dark stare.

" 'Just give me what I want and I'll let you leave, 'kay?' Weren't those your exact words?" He stood silent. A frown on his face. "Sorry to disappoint, I don't take orders, period."

"Jeremie, is that true?" A voice called from the top of the factory. Sissi slid down the rope. "Got your message, Yumi." Yumi nodded. She had sent Sissi a message while they were on their way to the factory.

The air became thick with tension. "How much of that did you hear?" He looked scared.

"Enough," she stated,"Don't worry, my father should be here any minute," Sissi put in. Aelita smirked.

"It's all true," she faced Sissi,"after Alora left we argued and he tried to force me to... Well I've already said it. I got out of course and yes, I set off the alarm. Then I fainted from exhaustion later. That landed me in the infirmary. Then I hyperventilated and smashed my hand through the cabinet window, overdosed on morphine, and almost killed myself." We were all in shock. I looked over quickly to Ulrich and he looked at me. Yeah, I think we were thinking the same thing.

Jeremie shook his head slowly. He stepped back once more and aimed at me again.

"Well, if I can't be happy," he looked to Aelita,"neither can you," he pulled the trigger. I saw Aelita run to me.

"NO!" Everything was in slow motion. I watched in horror as she stood in my way. I grabbed her and pulled her down with me. Ulrich tackled Jeremie to the floor. I held her for a minute. She's still breathing. I looked at her. She laid on top of me, I felt her move her head. Aelita looked into my eyes and smiled.

"I love you," she said softly. I let go of the breath I was holding.

"Aelita, you are so stupid! Why would you do that? You could've been- What were you thinking? I- I love you too." I held her face and rubbed circles on her cheeks. Aelita leaned her face in to mine and kissed me. Sweet and soft, but it only lasted a moment. "Don't you ever do something like that again!" I sat up and set her aside quickly. I rushed over to help Ulrich who had Jeremie pinned down. He punched him, hard.

"I told you, didn't I? I found out after all." I kicked him.

"You bastard, where do you get off? You- out of all of us- you were supposed to be the one who protected her the most!" Jeremie was coughing. Yumi and Sissi were checking on Aelita. She stood and walked over to where we were standing. She stood over Jeremie and kicked him, where no guy wants to be kicked. She leaned down and took his collar in her hands. His head met the concrete afterwards. I grabbed her to hold her back. Believe me, I wanted to let her keep going.

"Fuck you, Jeremie! Don't you ever even think about laying another hand on me ever again!"

"Sissi?" We all looked up.

"Down here!" Her father and the authorities had arrived. They started to make their way down. Ulrich kept his hold on a near unconscious Jeremie. I let go of Aelita. She turned to face me.

"Did you really think no one would miss you if you did that?"

"I, um... I thought you never wanted to see me again." I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Odd, I was terrible to you-"

"I understand, you don't have to-"

"No. Listen. I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have said that. Something broke inside my head and I took it out on you. Odd I swear I never meant to hurt you." I kissed her again. She tasted really sweet, like cherries. I almost forgot what was going on at the moment. I looked up and Jeremie was in handcuffs. Sissi was explaining what happened to her father and the authorities. Yumi and Ulrich were with her. This had been a long day.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

We headed back to the campus only to still be questioned of course. Everyone heard what happened. Aelita's story got out too. Soon, everyone was gossiping. The interviews hadn't finished until ten. When they were over, we all went to mine and Ulrich's dorm. Sissi stayed with Mr. Delmas.

We stayed in a comfortable silence for a couple of minutes. The girls left to change, leaving me and Ulrich alone.

"Aelita has been through alot, huh?" He asked quietly.

"Yeah, I can't believe...I don't want to believe that any of this happened." I sighed.

"Jeremie is a jerk. He doesn't deserve her." I smiled. I changed into some baggy black pants and a purple shirt.

"Lets hope this'll all be over soon." A soft knock came from the door. "Come in." Yumi and Aelita walked in.

"Time for bed kids." Yumi announced. We laughed. I threw my hoodie back on.

"Ulrich I think we should walk them to their dorms." He agreed.

We walked them down the hall to their room. Ulrich kissed Yumi goodnight and turned to leave. Aelita paused at the door.

"Good night, Odd." She smiled.

"Good night, Princess."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Disclaimer: Still have this story.

A/N: Part II! Yes! Jeremie finally got what he deserved. Aww. Yay for Aelita and Odd. Don't worry there's still more drama coming your way. It's not over yet. I don't like how too many fanfics make Aelita seem all weak so I decided she wouldn't be a posy here. As usual, reviews are very much appreciated. Love ya! C:


	10. I'll Take the Blame

"I heard he had a gun," a brunette whispered.

"I heard he was trying to kill Odd," another spoke.

"I heard Odd was tryin' to kill himself." A group of teenagers stood in the hallway. Everyone had been talking about the incident ever since they heard what happened. Aelita walked by and they went silent.

"Did you hear what happened to her?"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Jeremie is in jail. I don't know whether to feel relieved or feel bad for him. He was terrible to me, yet I feel sorry for him. I also feel some hatred towards him. Great. All my feelings are conflicted. Everyone keeps staring at me and whispering. I know what they're saying and it only makes me feel worse. I can see the pitiful looks they give me. I need to forget all of this. I sighed. I can't handle this alone. I grabbed my IPod out of my bag. On the walk back to my room, I looked through my music. Haven't heard this one in awhile.

_Listen close, as the rain falls down to the ground. It's true, we are, we are destined to fail. There is a problem here, with our society. The absence of my tears is my sobriety. I have a growing fear and you're not helping me. Am I the only one who realizes its true? Beat but I'm not broken. Guide me through with you're hand. Lead with your words spoken. Show me how to listen. Let your light shine through me. Take this hate I can't release. Help me make the blind see. Misery loves its company. _

I need something to distract me. I walked to my dresser. Nothing there. What is it I'm looking for? I closed my eyes to think. I checked the bottom drawer. A light went off in my head. I pulled the razor out. The blade was still sharp. Perfect.

In an instant, it was on my wrist. The blade felt cool against my skin. It moved over it smoothly, leaving only a red line as a trace it had been there. _You're persecuting me, showing hypocrisy. I have a remedy, for your insecurity. _I tugged it across again, harder this time. _It's all the same sadly, nobody works for free. _A neat cut formed and beads of blood appeared. _Am I the only one who realizes it's true?_ The blade ripped my skin again. Another time underneath that one and one more. It felt wonderful. I didn't feel the pain, just the rush. The blood was trickling down my arm slowly. Automatically, I went and grabbed a towel to clean it off.

I changed into a black long sleeve shirt. Yumi doesn't need to know, I don't want to worry my friends anymore. Trust me, I don't need another crazy story getting out about me right now. _Misery loves its company. It's true, we are, we are destined to fail. _

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

When classes were over, we all agreed to meet in the woods near the underground entrance to the factory. I figured fresh air is just what I needed. I pulled on my black boots and grabbed my cell phone. I won't ever leave that behind again. Yumi walked in very surprised to see me still in the room. Since I hadn't left yet, we decided to leave together.

I was glad I put on my long sleeved shirt, it was pretty windy. I watched as the leaves swirled around in the breeze. My eyes closed and I actually felt at peace. It ended all too soon when I remembered what Jeremie and I had been doing here just a few days ago. We walked in a comfortable silence but I could still feel a bit of tension near her. I stared down at the path, waiting for the other two to come into view.

"Windy, huh?" Yumi broke the silence. I nodded. My voice would fail me if I tried to speak, I just knew. "Aelita-"

"What took you guys so long?" I heard Ulrich ask. She had failed to notice how close we were to the entrance.

"Sorry, I got a little caught up in the hallways," Yumi apologized.

"Don't worry about it, Ulrich just couldn't wait to see you." Yumi laughed softly.

"Well we're gonna' go on a walk," she said while tugging Ulrich away,"catch up with you guys later." I sat down and watched their retreating forms.

"So I guess its just you and me," I directed at Odd. He looked down at me with a small smile.

"How were classes?" he asked.

"Okay I guess."

"That's not what you want to talk about is it?" I shook my head.

"Sorry." He came and stood by me.

"Its all over, you don't have to worry about it anymore." He spoke softly, like he was afraid if he spoke any louder everything would shatter. I just continued to sit quietly. The breeze picked up again. I listened to the trees shake.

"Why do I feel like I'm suffocating? I- I can't forget it no matter how hard I try. It- he meant the world to me, Odd." He had a bitter look on his face.

"Aelita, I- part of this was my fault."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

She looked sad and I could feel the pain in her eyes. Here it comes.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I kinda knew what Jeremie had been up to..." I didn't look at her. I couldn't.

"...You knew?" I nodded. "But you didn't tell me."

"I didn't think-"

"That's just it, you didn't think!" I flinched. I had it coming. "Its not your fault," her voice softened. I looked down at her. She was hugging her knees and her eyes were... watery? "Its not your fault," she repeated,"a part of me didn't want to see it." I sat down next to her.

"I don't blame you, we don't like to see the bad things sometimes, even if we know they may end up hurting us."

"That's just it. If I would have accepted it, this would have never happened." She pulled up her sleeve. I couldn't help but stare. "I hurt myself too."

"Aelita, you did that to yourself?"

"Just this afternoon," she grimaced.

"Oh Aelita..." We stayed silent for a while. I picked up her arm and examined it.

"I used a razor," she spoke up.

"Don't do this to yourself. If you need to vent, talk to me. I'm here for you."

"Thanks... My arm hurts now though," she winced. I pulled her hand up and kissed it. Then I kissed each scar on her arm slowly.

"Why is it, that everytime you kiss me, the burning stops?" she gasped out.

"Is that bad?"

"No, it feels so good."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

_A/N: OxA to be cont. next chapter._

_What could happen next? As always, thoughts and reviews are appreciated._


	11. For The Sake Of Being With You

A/N: I forgot to mention the name of the song and disclaim everything thank you MoonlitxAngel for asking!

Dedicated To: MoonlitxAngel and all my other loyal readers.

That was Misery Loves its Company by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus by the way for those of you who liked it and want to check it out.

Disclaimer: I don't own Code Lyoko nor do I own RJA's [awesome] song.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Ohh..." Aelita moaned. She tryed to look around but her head hurt too much. The ground beneath her felt damp. 'This place is way too dark to be my room,' she thought. Her body shivered as she felt a breeze pass over her. Wait, damp ground, a breeze? That was definitely odd.

"Odd?" she called out, her voice distressed. She squinted to see in front of herself. Vaguely, the outline of something came into view. Aelita pushed herself up onto her palms. Her headache pounded the back of her head but she ignored the pain. Slowly, she stood and inspected her arms and legs. 'Nothing out of the ordinary,' she thought. She pulled out her cell phone and looked at the time. The display lit, flashing a bright seven p.m. across the screen. Nearly two and a half hours ago they had just arrived. She used the light of the display to brighten the path.

'We never left the woods?' Another sudden breeze whisked by as if to confirm her thoughts. The pink haired girl shivered. This was definitely not right. She flashed it back over where she had seen the strange outline. Her heart stopped.

"Oh please, God no," she whispered. Yumi lay sprawled out on the floor and a couple feet away lay Ulrich. Aelita ran over to them. She looked them over quickly. Cuts and scratches covered the visible parts of them. She looked around them. That's when she saw it, the blood.

"What happened?" She tried her hardest to remember but she only drew a blank. Aelita tugged on her hair. Why couldn't she remember? She kneeled and shook Yumi carefully. "Yumi?" Where did the blood come from? "Ulrich?" she tried. Where was Odd? She shook them harder. Ulrich came to first.

"Aelita?"

"Ulrich, what happened?" She pulled him over to lay on her lap. He looked around.

" We're still in the woods." She nodded.

"Yumi won't wake up and I can't find Odd." His eyes widened.

"It really wasn't my imagination then..." he trailed off.

"Ulrich, what happened?" he glanced up at her.

"We have to get back to the dorms. Lets wake up Yumi." He sat up and held his head. Aelita helped him up. They went to Yumi who was still out cold on the ground. It was Ulrich's turn to shake her. Her eyes fluttered open.

"Ulrich?" she mumbled.

"Yeah, its me."

"Where's Aelita?" She asked suddenly becoming alert.

"She's fine, right here with me." Yumi tried to get up but instead yelled out in pain.

"My ankle hurts badly." Ulrich and Aelita got on either side of her and began to walk, carrying her on their shoulders. The walk seemed agonizingly long for such a short distance and every tree seemed like an obstacle. The dorms finally came into view. They walked into the building careful of Yumi's ankle when opening the door.

"You have to go to the infirmary." Ulrich told Yumi.

"No, its not that bad, honest," Yumi protested.

"Yumi, it needs proper care," Aelita stated. Yumi gave in, agreeing. They told Nurse Yolanda, Yumi had fell and sprained her ankle while running. She believed them and didn't press the matter. It happened all the time she said. The three teens said their goodbyes as Aelita and Ulrich walked out the door.

Aelita had pulled, nearly dragged, Ulrich all the way to her room.

"What happened?" she asked again.

"Aelita...I don't know."

"But I thought you had said you thought it was a dream."

"Sure felt like one. Me and Yumi were walking and we heard Odd calling us. We ran to where you guys were and Odd took off running. Yumi and I didn't have time to ask you what happened 'cause a Scyphozoa appeared. We went up against it and that's where I draw a blank." He stayed silent a moment before asking,"You don't remember any of this at all?" Aelita shook her head. "Can you try to remember what happened?"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

He kissed her arms and the 'burning' had stopped. He moved onto her shoulders, placing a gentle kiss on both. She tilted her head back, allowing him access to her neck. His lips trailed over each spot. She moaned softly when he sucked a small part at the base of her neck. Aelita ran her fingers through his hair, her eyes becoming hooded. His fingertips brushed against her skin setting it on fire. She laid back onto the ground. He kissed her lips, looking at her to see her wonderful reactions to everything he was doing. Odd smiled into the kiss. He rested his hands on her hips. She flinched. He pulled back quickly. Her eyes went wide.

"Do you want me to stop?" he asked softly.

"N-no, it just...reminded me..." He looked her in the eyes.

"I promised I would never hurt you. Aelita I love you, I've waited too long to just screw this up. If you don't want me to, I won't force you." Odd began to move off of her but she grabbed his wrist.

"No, don't. I just-" She pulled his hand over her chest,"Do you feel that?" He nodded. "You are the only person that can do that to me. You make my heart beat fast, you make me smile, feel so happy. I forget the world when I'm with you. It hurts when I'm not near you and- and I just want to feel like that all the time." He smiled at her and she smiled, a real smile, back. Warm tears escaped her eyes. He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. She pressed herself against him, as close as she could get. She had felt happy, that's all she remembered. Then, he was gone. It had lasted so long and she was still in the moment even now though she was only recalling it. She wanted to stay in that moment longer but was pulled back.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Aelita?" Ulrich waved his hand in front of her face. She looked at him. "Your face is extremely red," he pointed out," you were gone for twenty minutes, are you okay? Did you remember anything?"

"No. Nothing at all."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

A/N: OxA! Haha Writing this chapter was definitely something different, not in my usual comfort zone but I like how it turned out. If there are guys that are reading this fic, sorry about all the mushy romance stuff. It is supposed to be romance but I promise the action starts next chapter. So, where's Odd? What happened? And why is there blood? Reviews and thoughts are always welcomed! Tell me if you liked it, hated it, meh... was okay, or anything else you wanna say.

Much love, NobodyheartXIII c:


	12. Shoot It Out

The final bell rang loudly, signaling the end of the day. I threw my books into my bag hurriedly trying to leave as soon as possible. Odd hadn't shown up to any of our classes and Aelita kept shooting me nervous glances. I caught up with her so we could walk to Yumi's dorm. She was released this morning since she said her ankle was feeling much better. The nurse said she couldn't be walking around while it was healing. We made our visit quick as we explained to Yumi our plan to find Odd. We had come up with it just last night.

"I can't let you guys go to the factory alone." I knew this wouldn't be easy.

"Yumi, we need this time to search for Odd, every second we waste is time we could be using to find him. We're not going to talk about this right now, I promise Ulrich and I will be fine," Aelita said hurriedly. Yumi sighed but we took that as an o.k.

"We'll be fine Yumi, I promise too, and if anything happens we'll call you," I assured her. She smiled and I kissed her forehead before Aelita grabbed my hand and we ran out.

We made it outside quickly enough, still running. I made sure to keep a hold on Aelita's hand so she wouldn't out run me. She gripped my hand tightly. I could tell she was worried.

"What do you think a Scyphozoa was doing here?" She asked out of breath.

"I don't know, but it can't be good."

"Do you think XANA is back?" she asked quickly, quietly. I didn't have an answer for that.

We slowed when we neared the manhole and began walking. It wasn't as dark out here tonight so it was easy to see where we were going. I led Aelita along and before I knew it, we were at the factory. As we stepped into the elevator, I got this eerie feeling. I shrugged it off as nothing when we reached the computer room. The supercomputer was on and the screen was lit. So maybe I wasn't being paranoid. Aelita stepped forward to take a look.

"Someone has definitely been here recently," she pointed out to me. I took a look over her shoulder and stared at the screen. A view of Lyoko's desert sector was on the screen. This can't be.

"I thought X.A.N.A was done messing with us."

"X.A.N.A may have been dormant but we didn't destroy him," she said grimly," I'm going to run a super scan so I can see if maybe Odd is there." She clicked away at the keyboard while I watched. "Just a second and... there!" She smiled triumphantly. The scan began and a few seconds later it began beeping. Aelita opened the window. The screen flashed red rapidly with the word error printed across the screen. "Oh no," her face fell and she began to type rapidly again.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"There's an error in the program, I think there might be a bug in the system."

"What can I do?"

"Hold on." A few more clicks and the screen stopped flashing. She turned around to face me. "We're gonna' have to go in and check it out."

"Lyoko, here we come."

XxXxXxXxXxX

I set up a program on the supercomputer to virtualize us as soon as the scanner's doors closed. We stepped in and I smiled beginning to close my eyes as the process began.

XxXxXxXxXxX

We landed on Lyoko a moment later. I looked around feeling a sudden wave of nostalgia wash over me. I breathed the air in deeply feeling the desert sun on my face.

"I'm home," I whispered. A slight breeze stirred greeting my face as if it too were happy I was back.

"Cool." I heard Ulrich say. I turned to face him to see what he was talking about. Ulrich was looking a his outfit. Apparently, being away this long changed our looks to match our age. Our jumpsuit looking outfits both gone (thank goodness) and replaced. Ulrich was clothed in a yellow kimono, a black dragon winding around him. The tail started on his stomach snaking around to his back. He unsheathed his katana happy to have it in his hands again. The hilt had been changed to look like the dragon that covered his kimono. The blade was a good five feet colored a rosy pink, shining beautifully in the light.

"Remind me why we stopped coming here," he told me smiling. I couldn't help but smile back.

"I know, I missed it too." I looked myself over again to get a good look at my outfit. It's a dress. There are ruffles on the top that stop a little before the middle where it cuts into a v-neck. The top of the v-neck was laced but as it got lower there was a zipper to close it from the front. The bottom of it puffed out slightly. For once it wasn't pink. The whole outfit was black but the lace was purple. The band around my arm was also purple. I looked down at my boots. Very nice.

"Come on, we've got a lotta searching to do," I said snapping out of my girly daze. We ran through the Desert sector and reached the tower. The first sector we checked was Carthage, I figured if X.A.N.A was holding him he would be there.

We spent an hour in Carthage searching every place we could reach, but to no avail. Ulrich and I decided to split up the rest of the sectors. He took the Forest and Mountain sectors. I chose the Polar sector.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Aelita and I split up our search in hopes of finding Odd. I got through the mountain sector easy enough, there weren't many places to search. I entered the Forest sector wondering where on this world he could be.

"Odd!" I called. No reply. I couldn't help but heave a sigh. It was frustrating not knowing. Not knowing what happened, not knowing where Odd went, and not knowing if X.A.N.A was really the one behind all of this.

Everything was still and silent so I figured I could just pass through without a problem. Big mistake. I fell down after getting shot in the back by a laser. I turned around to see three bloks and two hornets after me. When did they show up? I jumped up quickly to strike at the monsters. The hornets stayed close shooting at me from above while the bloks stayed back, shooting from afar. I went after the hornet nearest to me and slashed through it easily. The other circled around waiting for my next move. Before I could strike, a blok shot me again. I pushed myself off the ground to get above the hornet's head. I aimed directly at the eye and watched as it shattered from my blow. I used triplicate and ran triangles around the remaining monsters. I stepped out then slashed a blok in its eye. Two left. I was sure I was going to win but I didn't block their duo ring attack in time. There goes my life points. I was devirtualized immediately. I stepped out of the scanner and hurried up to the computer.

"Aelita," no response,"Aelita?" Damn, I was devirtualized at the worst possible time.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

A/N: Well when a chapter ends like that, you know the drama is coming. Sorry for the long wait! Okay chapter I guess. Any comments? Sucked? (Yeah, kinda.) Haha I promise next chapter will be much, much better. I've been kind of busy with a new idea that I fell in love with for a second Code Lyoko story. If you want the deets, PM me or leave it in a review.


	13. Kill What's Left Of Me

Aelita looked up at the sky. She could've sworn she heard Ulrich's voice. 'That's impossible,' she thought,' that would mean...'

"Ulrich!" she tried after thinking she heard his voice twice more. "I'm here Ulrich." She heard a sigh of relief and couldn't help smiling.

"Are you okay in there?" he asked hopefully.

"Just fine Ulrich."

"Good, be careful, you aren't alone in there. I just got devirtualized a minute ago." Aelita nodded.

"Okay, just stay there and warn me if you see anything. I'm going to keep searching for Odd." She continued through the Polar sector cautiously. Nothing out of the ordinary beside the lack of monsters. She looked out at the dark water hoping Odd was okay. She was about to give up her search when she heard Ulrich talking in a panicked voice.

"Aelita? Hey! Gah! Aelita!"

"Ulrich what's wrong? What's going on out there? Ulrich!" She heard only static from the other end. "Great. Ulrich-" she gasped. Something shot her in the arm. Aelita turned to see four krabes and, even worse, a Colossus all behind her. She did the first thing that came to mind and ran. Behind her, the monsters continued attacking. She dodged the shots and jumped to the side when necessary. They weren't letting up. She tried to keep her pace. Deeper, longer breaths began to escape her lungs and she could feel her legs start to slow. A tower came into view but it was still much too far away. 'Guess I'm gonna have to fight,' she thought. Aelita raised her hands in the air. A pink ball of energy was conjoured up in each one. A smile slowly formed on her face.

"Bring it, I'm ready!" The monsters, as if they understood, pointed and aimed. Aelita jumped up then did a backflip in the air releasing the balls of energy as she fell. The krabes couldn't shoot fast enough. She shot three down easily. No way the princess was going to stand on the sidelines anymore. She was going to take a stand for herself even if it killed her. She dodged a few shots while keeping an eye on the Colossus. She ran toward the Krabe making sure not to stray too close to it. Aelita fell to her knees and slid beneath it. She put her hands together as if to pray then closed her eyes. A giant ball of energy formed around it, enclosing it. It could not break the ball. Suddenly, it was lifted off the ground and thrown at least two hundred feet away, breaking it instantly. Aelita opened her eyes. Four down, one to go.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

While Aelita was in Lyoko, Ulrich was in trouble on Earth himself. The computer began to malfunction again, closing the view of Lyoko in the meantime. He tried to get to Aelita and ask what to do but the signal was corrupted. The screen was frozen on error.

"Gah!" He shouted angrily before slamming his fists on the keyboard. If only he had taken the time to see how the computer worked. But it was no time to dwell on what should have been done. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Yumi's number. She answered on the first ring.

"Everything okay Ulrich?" she asked worriedly.

"Yeah everything's fine just one small problem," he replied. "The computer is malfunctioning and Aelita is still on Lyoko."

"Oh my goodness Ulrich what if she-"

"I know, that's why we don't have much time! Do you know anything about how the computer was programmed or how to override an error?" Yumi thought for a moment.

"Try right clicking on the mouse, that should bring up a shortcut menu. Then scroll to options, hit input, and a box should pop up." The boy listened and followed each step carefully.

"Okay," he confirmed.

"Type in override followed by... Damn! I don't know the password!" She cried.

"Hmm...Code Lyoko? No, too obvious...Hold on!" He typed two more words in and hit enter. 'Error Override,' the screen read. "Yes, thanks Yumi! You are the best!" Yumi smiled on the other end.

"What was it?" she asked curiously.

"Code Aelita," he said grimly. Jeremie was the one that made the password. His love for her had been so obvious in the beginning even in the little things like the password. Ulrich sighed heavily before saying goodbye to Yumi. He turned his attention back to Lyoko. Before he could ask Aelita if she was okay, he was knocked out of his chair.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Aelita had been hit once already by the Colossus. That was sixty of her life points down the drain now. She could have really used Ulrich's help. Her energy was running low from all the fighting. She finally decided on what to do. The pink haired girl raised her arms out to the sides. Once more she dropped to her knees. This time her energy was white. It radiated brightly rivaling the light of the Sun. They grew until finally she threw her hands straight towards the sky and let out a yell. She fell forward onto her hands and watched as it rained down over her head, hitting the Colossus with great force. It fell to the ground with a thud. Aelita sat up. She was about to celebrate her victory when she heard a sickening crack below her. She looked down to see the ice breaking.

"No!" she cried. She stood to run but faltered. The blast had used alot of her energy. The girl fell back on her knees. The creature was getting back up. "No! No!" It stood to it's full height and lunged towards her. She rolled forward underneath it. Her eyes were fixed on it, careful of its every move. "I can't do this alone! Odd!" she yelled out.

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"Wow, Ulrich, I thought you'd be tougher than that!" Ulrich lay on the floor at the unknown figure's feet. His vision was fading slowly. 'I know that voice,' he thought. "This all was just to easy! I guess I made the right choice. Breaking out was all to easy, especially with the help... Now, I can do this." The figure pulled something out of its pocket. 'Jeremie?' That was the last thought Ulrich had before his vision was completely blackened.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Disclaimer: I don't own Code Lyoko.

A/N: Did I make good on my promise? I think so! I really like this chapter. So now we have multiple cliff hangers. Things to think about: Who knocked out Ulrich? What were they doing in the factory? Is Aelita going to find Odd? Why was there blood in the forest?

Anyways, thanks so much to all my kind reviewers, you made my day I swear and I just **had** to put this chapter up! As always, reviews and thoughts are very much appreciated!

Much love, NobodyheartXIII


	14. Easier to Run

The Colussus tried to slash at Aelita repeatedly. She used what she assumed was the last of her strength to form an energy shield. It surrounded her, keeping her safe, but she wasn't sure how long it would last. It held up for the most part already taking alot of damage. The ground was still cracking and she didn't know how long it would last before it gave out too. The Colossus kept up its attack with much force seeing as it couldn't do anything else. Finally, after one particularly large blow the shield shattered. Aelita pushed herself to her limits. She ran for the tower she saw earlier. That was her only sanctuary right now. It reminded her of how this all started. How, in the beginning, she had done the exact same thing in pushing her body to its limits, running from her danger. The gym had been her only sanctuary then but she never made it. She remembered she had passed out from exhaustion. But she had been wrong then, as she was now. Her only sanctuary had not been the gym nor is it the tower. Rather her safe place, her sanctuary, was elsewhere and she would find it soon enough.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Jeremie sat at the supercomputer. His fingers knit together in a contemplative form. Did he really want to do this? He pushed the thought back. 'I want to do this,' he thought,' they made me.' The blond boy looked over to where Ulrich lay.

"You made me do this. No one had to find out," he whispered. "Now look what I have to do. I have to erase Lyoko, then pull off the ultimate return trip." He smiled. "How on Earth did I think of any of this? Well, I should give credit where its due. I didn't come up with this you see. I had help. Breaking out of jail, that was easy. Especially when there is an electrical shortage and the jail doors open automatically being secured by electricity and all. It also doesn't hurt to have a security guard under your control to help you get out. But now, I have to keep up my end of the bargain." He inserted the USB stick that he took out of his pocket earlier, into the computer. "Sorry Aelita, but X.A.N.A's orders. Should've just left it alone." He opened the file on the computer. A window popped up. "Download virus?" he shrugged,"Why not?" He was about to push the accept button when he was thrown out of the chair.

"You really are insane! I knew it all along," Yumi said while holding him down.

"And our heroine comes to save the day. Really Yumi? So cliche."

"Seriously Jeremie, do you realize what you're doing?" Jeremie grinned deviously.

"You asked for it." Before Yumi could respond, he pushed her off and switched their positions. "Now tell me Yumi," he pulled a switchblade from his pocket then held it to her face,"what's wrong?" Yumi wriggled underneath him trying to get free, obviously uncomfortable with the situation.

"Jeremie, get off! Please just stop it!" she shouted.

"I want to hear you beg," he pulled her hair to bring her ear to his mouth. Yumi cried out. "I want to hear you plead and scream and fucking beg for me to stop." He pushed her to the ground. Yumi laid on it in silence. He kicked her.

"Ungh," she gasped, rolling over in pain.

"I'm waiting." She looked into his eyes coldly. Jeremie couldn't help but grin. Something about that stare... He kicked her again. "Something about that stare really pisses me off."

"Hunh," she gasped again. Yumi held her body tight. She lifted her upper body, positioning her weight on her arm. Strands of her black hair fell onto her face covering it. For once, she was glad. It hid the look of pain and the hot tears ready to fall because of it.

"Aww, come now Yumi, it'll all be over soon."

"But it's not over yet," she sneered.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Woah!" Aelita shouted as she slid on the ice. "That's enough! I'm tired of running!" She turned to face the Colossus. "Just kill me already! There's nothing left, he's gone and it's all my fault." Aelita put her hand over her heart. She could feel it beating terribly fast. 'Wait!' She thought and her eyes grew wide. The teen jumped to the side just as one of the monster's long arms swept over the spot she had been. 'He's not gone.'

'Come on Aelita, I thought you were tougher than that!' A voice laughed in her mind.

"I knew it! You never left, huh?" She felt some sort of strength filling her body but this time much more powerful than before. Her fingertips began to glow. She swept them over her heart to which they began to glow brighter, stronger. Aelita clenched her hands into fists until they grew. The purple light of the orbs bounced off her face.

'Let's do this together,' Odd's voice rang fiercely in her thoughts. Aelita nodded to herself solemnly. "This time, I'll save you." Aelita raised her arms. The Colossus seemed to finally grow irritable of the wait. It slashed its arms at the girl fiercely. They stuck in the ice everytime they missed causing the ground to crack more. Aelita waited for its next attack before leaping onto its arm then to its head. She threw her energy balls at it making it stumble backwards with each powerful hit. Aelita jumped just above its head then threw a large energy ball directly at the insignia of X.A.N.A It shattered into millions of pieces.

After dropping down, Aelita shot at the cracked ice. A chunk broke away and she hopped onto it to guide it through the water. Krsh! The sound of roaring water filled her ears. She looked around to find its source. A waterfall came into clear view. Why hadn't she thought of it sooner? A red glow made itself visible from behind the fountain and she smiled.

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A/N: Thanks for all the awesome reviews! You guys are wonderful. Oh, and so there's no confusion, this story is not over yet. We still have a bit more to get through before I end this.

Replies to reviews: Thanks to Elli JELLY BeaN for your kind review, I'm really glad you're enjoying my story and the return to Lyoko is awesome isn't it? Hahaha I'm sure you'll love what I have planned if you like it so far.

MoonlitxAngel, you are the absolute best! Thanks for sticking with me through this whole adventure. I really hope you'll love the rest!

Gracias a Anonimo por su critica, sus palabras me hacen feliz. c:

Disclaimer: I don't own Code Lyoko.


	15. Finally I Can Breathe

Yumi pushed Jeremie off of her. She ran over to Ulrich to try and wake him up. Jeremie wrapped his arms around her. "Augh!" Yumi yelled. He pushed her back. Yumi stumbled backwards trying to keep her balance. She couldn't afford to look away for a moment. She did a high kick. Her boot knocked him back easily. Yumi walked towards him as he pulled out the knife. Yumi grabbed for it and he pulled her in by her wrist. They rolled around. Yumi kicked at him each chance she got.

"Enough!" Jeremie picked her up and slammed her back against the wall. Yumi let out a cry. He tilted her head to look back at him with the blade. The girl looked obviously drained. She struggled to stay concious, fighting the strong urge to just give in. "That's it, close your eyes," his voice whispered to her in a dangerously low tone.

"You're crazy!" she cried out. Ulrich began to stir. Jeremie slapped Yumi creating a harsh sound from the contact. Aelita, please hurry.

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Aelita explored around the tower behind the waterfall. She had an undescribably strong feeling Odd was so near to her. Finally, she held her breath before entering it. Whether or not she found Odd, it would need to be deactivated.

Aelita made her way to the middle of the platform decorated with the eye of X.A.N.A. Each ring of the eye lit up as she stepped nearer to its center. A shiver racked her body. It seemed as though that the eye would forever haunt her. All thoughts cleared her mind as she reached the second platform. She stepped onto it cautiously, as though it might shatter into millions of pieces any second. No Odd. Inwardly, she sighed in frustration and her heart sank. The girl fell to her knees. She looked at the walls surrounding her. Data surged through it as usual giving off the blue glow as it ran its course. Before she could register her own movements, Aelita found herself touching the walls with her fingertips. A ripple formed causing the data to break. That's strange, she thought. She began pushing more and more of it aside. To think, she was acting on a whim! Normally, she would have never tried something so risky at least not without thinking over the consequences. Something inside assured her though. A vibrant and very much alive part of her. It pushed her to continue. Odd, she was sure. She had convinced herself of it and with this newfound confirmation she continued. Her movements now more urgent but filled with purpose.

The girl was in utter shock. She was shocked that the idea had worked, shocked that it had led her through an unknown passage to another platform, and absolutely stunned when her saviour turned to face her.

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Ulrich stood up slowly in his place in the corner.

"Nice of you to join us Stern." Ulrich looked to Jeremie. His eyes widened at the sight splayed before him.

"Jeremie, stop," he said, his voice weak. He knew it would be of no use. The boy across from him brought the blade up to rest on her cheek. Slowly, he pulled down and Yumi grimaced. He kicked her down to the ground once more and she cried out in so much pain. Ulrich could only watch as she laid there between them.

"I'm so sorry,Yumi." Jeremie clicked his tongue.

"Are you going to let me finish now?" Jeremie asked bitterly, triumphantly. Ulrich nodded his head. All he could focus on was Yumi. Her breath came out in ragged gasps. The blond boy crossed over her to the computer. Ulrich kneeled by Yumi.

"Don... let him...destroy Lyoko," Yumi tried.

"Shh. Quiet Yumi." He moved some of the strands of hair out of her face. His hand cupped her cheek and he brought her face up to his. Their lips pushed together for a moment. Ulrich would do anything to distract her from the pain.

"Nngh!" Jeremie let out a distressed cry. Ulrich left Yumi for moment to see what was going on. The insignia of X.A.N.A fought to show itself in the other boy's eyes. Ulrich took this time to restrain him. He bound him to the chair quickly before he could regain control. A sudden tremor shook the ground beneath him. What now?

"Ulrich!" He raced over to Yumi. She pulled a rectangular tin pencil case from her boot. The boy stared at it questioningly. "It's a sedative," she explained. Ulrich instantly knew what to do. He took it over to Jeremie and stuck it in his arm. The blond boy steadily became dreary. Leave it to Yumi to come prepared. The ground shook again violently.

"Download virus?" The computer probed. Ulrich walked over and canceled it. The map of Lyoko became visible again. The only problem? Aelita wasn't anywhere to be seen.

Ulrich picked up Yumi and set her near the computer.

"I need you to watch over Lyoko for me while I check out the real world," he told her.

"Be careful," she responded wearily. He pulled her close again as another tremor began.

"Don't worry, I'll be back and if Jeremie wakes up use the rest of the sedative. I didn't use all of it."

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Aelita drank in the sight of him. She had never been so happy to see Odd in her life. He smiled at her and she felt as though all she had been through was just some sort of dream. Odd Della Robbia was absolutely beautiful. His tall lanky figure stood patiently as if he had been waiting for her to visit this whole time. She ran over to him then stopped abruptly before him. If I touch him, she thought, he might... She couldn't bear to finish.

"I knew you wouldn't give up," he whispered. Aelita ran her hands through his hair. She brought her fingers down to trace his eyes and then his 's when she noticed the wounds. She pushed his black tank up slightly to reveal more. Odd pulled her arms around his neck and kissed her. For once, he wasn't worried about the world around him, or anything else for that matter. Everything was lost to them. He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Why are you crying?" his voice once again a whisper.

"You are just too damn beautiful." Aelita pushed herself into him, closing the little space between them.

They fell over the edge. The falling sensation only made her want more. He fell back and she was just over him. He pulled her hand and they continued falling to the platform below.

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Disclaimer: I don't own Code Lyoko.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Hope you guys are enjoying the story.


	16. Prove It To Me

Dedicado a anonimo, porque le gusta mi historia, y me animó a escribir pronto (y lo hago por su puesto).

Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own, don't sue.

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They continued falling, slowing only when the platform came within reach. Aelita tore her gaze from Odd to see the screen appear. She went over to it then just as she was about to place her hand on the screen Odd stopped her.

"Odd, we have to deactivate it." Odd stared at her intently. His grip on her wrist tightened.

"No...This, this isn't it." Aelita stared at him very confused. "Come on. We have to get out of here." The screen became overcome with static. The data began to fall away around them. She grabbed Odd's hand and held it tightly. No way was she going to lose him again.

"Aelita, jump." The girl did as she was told without a second thought.

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Yumi smiled at the sight of the deactivated tower."Yes! She did it!" Yumi cheered. She pushed the return button excitedly as she waited for the white flash to engulf them. Nothing happened. Her smile fell. But, it's deactivated she thought. That didn't make sense to her at all. The return always worked after the deactivation of the tower. Right? She racked her brain thinking of all the possible reasons it could have failed. It should have worked, unless... "There's another tower," she murmured. "Aelita!" Yumi called for the pink haired girl. She winced as she forced her aching body to stand. The globe showing the sectors appeared. They were all empty. Yumi tapped on it to zoom in on certain spots she thought the other girl might be. Good thing she was always watching how the computer worked.

"Aelita!" she tried once more.

"I'm here Yumi."

"What happened?"

"Well fake towers don't have signal," she replied. That made sense, Yumi thought.

"Do you see anymore activated towers?"

"I just ran a complete super scan over Lyoko to find you and nothing unordinary popped up. No tower warnings or anything else for that matter. Something tells me it's not gonna' be easy to find." She didn't need to see Aelita to know she was agreeing.

"Is everything okay up there?"

"Um, nothing I can't handle." She looked over at Jeremie. "Tell me if you need anything, I'll be here."

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Odd watched Aelita silently as she talked with Yumi. When they finished, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him. He smiled at her sweetly.

"Why do you look at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like I'm the most perfect person in the world. I should look at you like that."

"Because," he crossed his arms behind his head,"you're my princess, that's why." He smiled.

"I'm not a little princess anymore if you haven't noticed."

"Yeah, I know. Now come on, the world is ending."

"But we don't know where the tower is." Odd brought his mouth down to her ear and whispered.

"I do." Aelita was puzzled. "He's listening." Odd pointed towards where the tower had been. She immediately understood. Aelita grabbed his hand in hers and they ran to the other tower.

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Yumi watched the screen. From the reflection she could see Jeremie pulling at his restraints. She grabbed the syringe with the sedative in it. He opened his eyes.

"Stay absolutely still." She stood closer to him to inject the sedative. He yanked at the straps and tore them. Just great. She silently beckoned him forth. They fought, which took great effort on Yumi's half at least considering how much damage she had already taken. She avoided most of his attacks for the meantime. Another kick. He backed away for a moment while Yumi clutched her side trying to catch her breath. Then, all at once, he rushed toward her. She was startled by the sudden movement and backed up to the wall. She gasped. He pulled the sedative from her hand in a quick movement. A stinging sensation came from her arm. The girl's eyelids became very heavy. What's this? Why am I so...tired? Yumi looked down at her shoulder. The needle was in her arm. She fell to the floor slowly. The X.A.N.A. possessed Jeremie walked to the supercomputer. He restarted the program. The virus began to download.

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They entered together with Odd leading the way. They rose to the second platform in haste. Aelita's presence prompted a screen to appear. Odd went up to it and input a few code words so he and Aelita could be taken to the Carthage sector. Aelita raised her eyebrows in inquiry but continued watching silently.

"There is a section in Carthage hidden away that no one is allowed into, not even X.A.N.A, but he still can access the tower located in it," he explained. "This section isn't visible on the map and it's actually pretty hard to locate. There's a certain code that unlocks the sector which only Franz knew. Lucky for me," he smiled,"I did a little research. If we can get into that sector, we can deactivate the tower. Most likely, that will stop all the trouble going on up there. Only problem is, it's located in the digital sea, and since it is so hard to find... If we choose the wrong part of the digital sea, it could be game over." Aelita bit her lip in thought. She'd heard about a secret sector hidden somewhere in Lyoko before.

"Well, I don't know where in the sector it could be but... I'm willing to try." The confidence in her voice made Odd smile. The girl had such a determined face it made him feel terribly giddy. Ha. Wow. He tugged on some of the wispy strands of her hair. He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it.

"Well princess, now's your chance to prove to me you can hold your own." Aelita grinned at the thought. Odd was always saving her. Now it was her time to show him she could, in fact, protect not only herself but both their worlds.

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A/N: *Sniff sniff* Well, we all knew it was coming, it is inevitable sadly, the ending is near for my story. Thanks to those of you who took the time to check it out, and review and whatnot. A few more chapters left to go but I promise to end with a bang! Review please my loves!


	17. Closer than Far

The elevator slowed to a stop before the door opened quietly. He stepped out and immediately the tense air engulfed him. Ulrich made his way over to where he had left Yumi. He could see Jeremie seated in the chair watching the computer's screen. Ugh, great, can't I get a break, he thought. Everyone had freaked out about the tremors above ground. He'd gotten all of them to stay inside even the very insistent Sissy who volunteered to help. He appreciated it, really he did, but he didn't need anyone getting hurt.

Ulrich walked past Jeremie as quietly as he could. Yumi was still resting against the wall. The syringe laid next to her on the ground having been discarded haphazardly. He shook her lightly. Her eyes opened slowly and her eyebrows knit together in confusion at the sight of him. She murmured his name and he put a finger to her lips. Yumi's vision was blurry as the sedative was still wearing off. Ulrich mouthed the word sedative but was surprised when she nodded to her boot. Ulrich put his hand inside and immediately felt another tin pencil case. Inside, was another syringe. He kissed her forehead lightly before making his way back to Jeremie with a more than healthy dose of it.

He was very surprised when he injected Jeremie without a problem. Ulrich watched in awe as it drained into his ex-friend's skin. Never in a million years would he have thought he would be doing anything like this. Especially not to his friend. He immediately cast the thoughts away and focused his attention back to the task at hand. He looked at the screen that displayed the map of Lyoko.

"Aelita?" A pause.

"Ulrich, is that you?" came her response. He chuckled half heartedly to himself.

"Yeah, it's me. Have you figured out what's going on yet? And who's that with you? Are you okay?" It was Aelita's turn to laugh.

"Why so paraniod Stern?" A lighthearted voice responded for her.

"Odd!" he couldn't help smiling. "So you are okay then."

"We're headed for Carthage, that's where the real tower is." He explained what had happened quickly filling him in.

"A fake tower huh? Sounds like he's stalling."

"We're really going to need your help and Yumi's," Aelita paused," we don't know what X.A.N.A is going to put us up against but I'm sure it's not going to be easy. He can still send monsters to that sector."

"'Kay, Yumi and I will be there in a minute."

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Aelita and Odd were just about to leave the tower when they heard Ulrich's voice. They stayed in and talked with him considering it was the only safe place they could talk without X.A.N.A overhearing.

"What do you think we're up against?" Aelita asked Odd softly. He looked over to see the expression on her face. It was a mix of thoughtfulness and anxiety. A small frown graced her rosy lips. He couldn't help thinking how badly he would like to just press his lips against hers. She really wasn't a little princess anymore. No, he decided after a bit of thought, she wasn't. Aelita was too sexy to still be just a child. She had long legs, bright green eyes that shone when she laughed, and those plump rosy lips. Yeah, he stared. Who wouldn't? He knew many guys that had been jealous of Jeremie for having her, including himself. Then the outfits she had started wearing to get his attention, God. She had killed him with that. Shorts should have been a fucking crime for her to wear. Then there were the tank tops she wore to top them off. She knew exactly how to get a guy's eye on her. He'd meant it when he had said she always looked beautiful. He wasn't only concerned with her looks though, obviously. He couldn't love her as much as he did if that were all, 'cause that was just lust. He knew at least that much. Odd looked up and met her eyes. Shit, she said something.

"You were staring for an awfully long time." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Sorry." She pulled on his wrists, wrapping them around her waist. That really caught him off guard.

"What were you staring at?" He knew she wasn't going to let him off easy. She made sure her lips were extremely close to his own. A small blush made its way on his face. She knew exactly how to throw him off.

"N-nothing." Idiot, he had to stutter.

"Oh really?" She pulled away,"Okay then..."

"Fuck," he muttered under his breath. She brushed her lips over his jaw. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. She brought her lips up to his agonizingly slow.

"When?" she smirked. Odd's usually pale face turned bright red. He'd be lying if he said he hadn't thought about it. But since when had his little innocent Aelita begun to act so... Risque? Anyway, now he was completely sure she wasn't a little princess anymore. And how was he supposed to reply to that? He soon found out he wouldn't have to as Aelita crashed her lips into his. Wow. That was his first thought.

"I missed you so much, I need you. Odd," she panted heavily after they broke away for a quick breath. Her cheeks were pink and her eyes were hooded. Damn, that turned him on. He pushed his lips against hers again and opened her mouth. They were still technically in France right? That's when he thought Jeremie was right about at least one thing. Aelita was a damn good kisser.

After a minute more, he pulled away (very) reluctantly. "We're never gonna' get to Carthage like this," he told her softly. She smiled slightly.

"Fine, but first thing's first," she said. The look in her eyes was so serious he honestly didn't know what to expect. She put her lips to his neck and bit and sucked at the exposed pale skin. Odd moaned in ecstasy. "You're mine," she murmured in his ear. He put her down on her feet and steadied himself.

"Whatever you want my love."

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Disclaimer: Code Lyoko isn't mine.

A/N: ...OxA FTW! Hahaha It is still a romance remember? I loved writing that bit by the way. Aelita is such a bad girl. Haha Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Review please!


	18. Friends Forever

A/N: Isn't it weird how romantic scenes happen at the worst times? Haha They do it in movies all the time so I figured, why not? And Aelita seemed really Oocish huh? C: Anyway, on with the story.

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"Are you okay?" Yumi looked up to see Ulrich hovering over her.

"Just fine," she managed. At least her vision wasn't still fuzzy. "So, we're going to Lyoko?" Ulrich nodded.

"I already began running the self virtualization program." He helped her stand up, slowly. Before they could enter the elevator, a notification window appeared on the computer. Download: ninety percent. Yumi's eyes widened.

"He started the download again!"

"Okay, well let's just cancel it again." He went over and typed in the code as he did before. Error. "Uh-oh, we can't stop it."

"Don't say it so calmly! We have to go and deactivate that tower fast!" Yumi pulled him to the elevator. She tapped her foot impatiently as the doors closed slower than ever, in her mind at least.

The scanner doors closed behind them. Just as planned, the program started up and, in seconds, they were on the surface of Lyoko.

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"It's just like I remember," Yumi smiled. She looked down and admired her kimono. It was a short, black one with pink cherry blossoms along the left side. A gold and purple Obi was tied around her waist. She especially loved the boots.

Ulrich smiled at her. "Let's go find Aelita and Odd." Yumi's head snapped up.

"She found Odd?" Ulrich explained to her while they made their way to the nearest tower.

Meanwhile, Aelita and Odd made their way through Carthage looking for Yumi and Ulrich. She always kept a firm grip on his hand and it made him feel breathless. It was kind of like being on cloud nine. With everything that had happened though he couldn't help but feel like it was all a dream. On one hand, he'd be glad to wake up from it. The pain his friends had gone through, especially Aelita, was just not something he wished were true. Even if on the other hand, he'd gotten what he always wanted. It was just too surreal.

"Odd?" Oops, he zoned out again.

"Sorry, what'd you say?"

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asked rather than repeating herself. Her face was full of worry. Why was she always thinking she did something wrong? "If it's about earlier..." Odd stopped her in her tracks.

"Woah, hold on." He pulled her face to look at him. Great, tears. He wasn't good with tears. He placed one hand on either side of her face. "You didn't do anything wrong. Aelita, why do you- It's because of him, huh?" He looked her directly in the eyes. She looked down. Yeah, he hit it right on the mark.

"I- It wasn't his fault, I screwed up alot and..."

"Listen, not everything is your fault! You aren't the only one who screws up! Damn it, he should be apologizing. You are absolutely amazing and you don't need me or anyone else to tell you that. And, earlier, you didn't do anything wrong so stop worrying. I've always wanted to do that with you," he admitted with a light blush on his face.

"Odd, I love you." She kissed him softly, losing herself in it. How did she not see him this whole time? It made her heart hurt to think about and she had to push herself closer against him.

"Gotta' stop that or we'll never make it," he whispered. "I love you." Then he grabbed her hand in his and they continued walking.

A few minutes later Odd pushed Aelia behind him. She peered over his shoulder. Someone was headed their way. He kept his grip on her wrist.

"Odd, what is it?"

"Shhh." He kept his gaze fixed across from them. Before she could blink, her hand was torn from Odd's and he was on the ground.

Yumi had took off running ahead of Ulrich without any explanation. Her injuries on Earth had no affect on her here obviously. He smiled to himself. He caught up with her easily enough using Supersprint and lifted her on to his shoulders. She laughed happily.

"Straight ahead Ulrich!" She commanded. A few feet before they reached the other two Ulrich stopped and Yumi jumped down. She began running again and Ulrich followed staying close behind.

"It really is you! I can't believe you're okay!" she shouted. Aelita laughed at the sight before her. Odd was sprawled out underneath Yumi who was speaking excitedly. "I didn't think we would see you again! Oh my gosh, Ulrich are you seeing this?"

"Yumi, I'm really glad to see you and all but-"

"Right, sorry." She stood up happily. Odd winced as he stood. "Wait, are you okay? Did I hurt you?" Her eagerness to see him died down a little.

"No, it wasn't you," he smiled at her,"Just a few scratches, nothing too bad." Aelita stopped laughing.

"Just a few? You have bruises and cuts everywhere! And it's all Jeremie's fucking fault." Yumi arched an eyebrow.

"Bastard. Well, don't worry, as soon as this is over he won't hurt anyone ever again," she spoke seriously, then just as soon as she had picked up the tone, dropped it. "Oh and sorry about-" she waved her hand, "that, I was just so happy to see you again." Odd chuckled.

"Don't worry about it, I"m just glad to see you two again. What's the matter Ulrich, cat got your tongue?" Yumi looked at Ulrich and laughed. He had a stunned expression on his face.

"No, I uh..." he trailed off.

"Glad to see you again too, bud." Odd couldn't bite down the goofy grin that found its way on his face.

"Yeah yeah, just don't ever do somethin' like that again yeah?" The girls laughed.

"You know Odd, I could see that spikey head from a mile away," Yumi teased. She smiled happily and Odd was sure it'd be a while before she smiled like that again. He was just glad to be surrounded by his friends once more.

"So, do we know where we're headed?" Ulrich asked curiously. They had told him about Carthage already but had they found where in Carthage they were supposed to go?

"Well, actually, we don't exactly know still. But since it has to do with the Digital Sea, it has to be dangerous so we're not rushing anything," Odd replied. Ulrich raised his eyebrows in alarm.

"Uh, sorry to tell you this guys but we may not have as much time as you think."

"Why, what happened?" Aelita asked.

"Jeremie started up the virus download again, and we couldn't stop it this time. It was already at ninety percent completion when we left."

"Well, I guess we better get moving," Odd said.

"What happened to Jeremie by the way?" Aelita couldn't help but ask.

"He's heavily sedated and bound at the moment actually," Yumi answered her. Aelita rubbed the back of her neck. She had an extremely nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach about all this. Odd could see it.

"Listen, everything's gonna' be fine," he comforted her. "This'll be a piece of cake compared to what we've gone through." Aelita stared at the ground.

"You're right," she lied, "everything will be just fine." She tried convincing herself. But unfortunately her visions don't lie. No matter how much she wished they would. Odd smiled, blissfully unaware. He pressed his lips to hers softly. Ulrich and Yumi looked away. The scenery just seemed suddenly more interesting. Yumi blushed and Ulrich coughed.

"So **that's **what you guys have been doing huh?" Ulrich teased. Odd scowled.

"Like you haven't been kissing Yumi up there," he teased back. Yumi coughed this time.

"Okay so, where are we headed again?"

"Carthage here we come." Aelita grabbed Odd's hand in her own.

"First thing's first," he started,"no matter what happens, we're all coming back together. Got it?" They all smiled heartedly, innocent children in a big world, not knowing what would be ahead waiting for them.

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A/N: So I re-wrote this chapter because honestly, I was reading my story over and I was very ashamed of myself. That was the sloppiest mess I have ever written. Hopefully this is ten times better and you like it.

Reviews are always welcome! As always. By the way, I know I've been away terribly long and my explanation for that is in the next chapter but I had to get this done first. It was really sloppy. Thank you for reading everyone and I promise I will have the next, newest chapter up very soon.

Status: Disclaimed


	19. Falling

I am very sorry for the extremely long delay. This chapter is long overdue and I never intended for you, my readers, to have to wait this long. I hope you all can forgive me and continue reading and reviewing my story. To make a long story short, the reason I haven't updated in forever is because I lost my cell and barely got a new one. It's the only way I can update my story so that's the reason for the long wait. If you are reading this, thank you so much for following me this long.

My sincerest apologies,

NobodyheartXIII (Amber)

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Code: |

Code: SCIPIO|

Aelita smiled as she watched over Odd's shoulder while he typed.

"When did you learn about that?" She asked.

"I told you, I've done my research." He smiled at her. The code prompted a transport orb to show up in the tower, ready to take them away to their destination. It was the quickest way for them to get there. To Carthage. They had walked back to the tower they had talked to Ulrich in earlier, the one they were standing in now. The trip so far had been pretty easy. No monsters, still highly unusual especially since there was a virus running.

They all stared out at the data tunnel surrounding them as the orb took them to Carthage. The data moved quickly in undeterminable amounts. It made its way to the core in a rush. Seeing this made Aelita extremely uneasy. What if that data was headed straight for deletion? What if that data was pieces of Lyoko? She shivered in anxiety.

They were all obviously on edge, waiting for any little thing to happen. Carthage had never seemed so big until now. They felt as if they were traveling in one large maze. Especially with all the blocks moving and rearranging themselves around the teens. A new path was made with every step they took. How were they supposed to know what part of the digital sea they were supposed to dive into? They couldn't just try out the whole sea. For one, they could die if they did and two even if they didn't die, they surely didn't have the time to check every part of it.

Then, Ulrich asked what was on everyone's mind.

"Where's the tower?" They all stopped walking for a moment. Aelita looked to Odd who showed no emotion. He stared out in front of them. The sector seemed to stretch out forever. Sure he knew it was in Carthage, even better, he knew that it was in the secret sector, but he didn't know where that secret sector was or how to access it. He turned to face Ulrich and answered.

"I don't know."

"So you don't know where the sector is either?" Aelita asked. Odd shook his head in silent thought.

"All I know is it's somewhere in the Digital Sea."

"Hey, guys, doesn't something in this sector seem a little...off?" Yumi spoke up. Something was really strange about all this. She had the weirdest dejà vû sensation.

"Besides the lack of monsters?" Odd asked. Yumi nodded solemnly.

"It's fading..." Aelita mumbled,then repeated herself, louder," Odd, Lyoko is fading!" The tone of her voice screamed urgency. Ulrich and Yumi gave each other a knowing stare.

"The virus is spreading fast," Ulrich stated worriedly.

"What do we do?" Yumi asked. Odd couldn't concentrate.

"We're wasting time!"Aelita hurried ahead.

"Aelita!" Odd ran after her. He could see her just ahead of him. Lucky for Odd she wasn't much faster than him. He kept calling after her, repeating her name but she wouldn't stop. He sped up a little almost close enough to touch her back. Aelita didn't seem to be running of her own power though. Surely she would have gotten tired by now.

"Odd! It's happening!" She shouted. 'What's happening?' he thought to himself. Blocks started shifting out of nowhere it seemed, blocking Odd's path. He leapt over them and slid under them and kept his eyes locked on Aelita who was just ahead of him. She was dodging blocks too. Though it seemed she had an advantage. She was the one making them move. A black energy surrounded her and the blocks she was moving. He caught up to her just in time to see her stop at the edge of a platform, teetering, about to fall over.

"Aelita no!" Odd's heart was pounding in his chest. 'What is she doing?' he yelled to himself. Aelita turned to face him. She flashed him a wicked smirk. The black energy surrounded her hands, taking the place of her usual pink energy balls. He jumped forward to grab her but she fell back, straight into the digital sea. His hand grasped air and he fell to his knees. His heart fell into his stomach. Ulrich and Yumi finished dodging the obstacle of blocks just in time to see Aelita fall and Odd on the ground. He hit it with his fist.

"Aelita, what were you thinking?" Odd looked over the edge and cried out. Yumi stood next to him, eyes wide searching the stream of data for any sign of the girl. Aelita couldn't have just dissappeared like that. No. She kept staring into it as if that would bring her friend back.

Odd felt as if something was tugging on him. Aelita. Right? She didn't just do something totally stupid. He just imagined all that and now she's trying to help him up. He turned to look at Yumi. Silent tears streamed down her face. No, not Aelita. He wasn't imagining. She did jump. Then the tugging felt stronger. He stood up and continued staring into the data. He jumped into it.

"Odd, NO!" Yumi caught his wrist.

"I have to go in after her! She's in there!" Yumi had a pained expression on her face because of the loss of her best friend.

"I can't lose you too, it's too risky!" Odd returned her expression.

"I said no matter what, we're all coming back together!" She let go reluctantly. He continued to fall. She stared after him until she could no longer see him.

Without hesitation, Ulrich grabbed her hand and jumped in after him.

"Ulrich!" She yelled.

"Trust me!" Yumi closed her eyes and felt her stomach drop as they fell. How many times had she almost fallen into the digital sea? Too many to count. She had fallen in once though. What had happened to her when she did? Yumi tried her hardest to remember. It was all a fuzzy memory.

They landed on a platform with a soft thud. Yumi opened her eyes. Every digital code that made up Lyoko surrounded them.

"We were supposed to be deleted," Ulrich saw Odd a few steps ahead of them. He was speaking aloud to them.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"What a great show...Too bad it won't last long." Jeremie sat at the computer screen, the sedative worn off long ago. X.A.N.A. was in complete control it seemed. The tremors above ground grew stronger. Lyoko was being deleted in a lovely manner. Everything was going perfect.

Download at 95%.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Good comeback? Please review!


	20. Crumpled memories and darkness

XxX Vision XxX

"Don't you see my little _Aelita?_ You can't save anyone. You can try to fight it, but we both know. The dark powers reside in you. Don't fight it. It's so much easier to give in." X.A.N.A clutched Aelita's shoulder. Her eyes were fixated in a wide seemingly hypnotized stare. The dark energy surrounded his hand and flowed through her body.

Aelita succumbed to the dark power. She let it fill her, almost to the point of overflowing. Her fingers trembled with the power. Dark rays shot out of her, enveloping her surroundings in complete darkness.

"Yes! Let it fill you! Embrace it!"

XxXxXxXxXxX

Aelita opened her eyes to see... everything was falling? No, she's falling. The data was glowing around her. She could hear Odd's voice calling for her. She could hear Yumi sobbing. Why? She fell into the digital sea right? She wasn't dead.

Her feet landed on a platform softly. It lit up slowly and she stepped forward. Her shadow seemed to engulf her. She hadn't noticed that the whole time her fists were clenched, consumed by dark energy. Aelita clutched her head. The vision kept recurring behind her eyelids. She refused to give in. Tak tak tak.

"Who's there?" she prepared her hands in a fighting stance. The footsteps sounded louder as they came closer.

"Oh but you already have. Don't you remember? Just now before I brought you here."

"Wha- what are you talking about? Make sense now!" Aelita furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and anger. X.A.N.A stepped in front of her. "Ah-" he ran his hand through her hair. She felt paralyzed.

"But don't you remember?" He repeated chuckling wickedly. "You hurt Odd, you lashed out at your friends, why just now you pushed your friends away to get here my young apprentice."

"You- you're lying!"

"Oh am I?"

"I don't remember that! I would never-"

"Oh but you would," he snarled. His fingernails dug into her skin through her shirt. Her skin began to sting under his touch. "You would and you have."

"Agh! AGHHH!" She fell to the ground. Her body writhed on the floor. He leaned down close to the cup of her ear.

"That's right, remember."

XxXxXxXxXxX

_He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. She pressed herself against him, as close as she could get. She had felt happy, that's all she remembered. Then, he was gone. _Where had he gone? Wait. That's right.

"_Odd, stop."_

_"Hmm?" Odd looked over at where she lay in the grass. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly. "Aelita, what's wrong?" He turned to her and laid his fingers on her face. Her eyes shot open wide._

_"I said Stop!" An invisible force pushed him back and he flew across the ground. She walked over to him and smirked. _

_"Pathetic," her voice was harsh. She kicked him and he winced. "Did you think you could stop me?" Her dark energy emanated around her. Odd rose to his knees._

_"Aelita-"_

_"Don't mention that name in my prescence," her voice distorted,"at last, haha, at last, the princess of darkness is free!" _

_"No." He stood. "You're wrong." He lunged towards her and she dropped to her knees._

_"O- odd? Wha-" He stopped in front of her._

_"Listen, Aelita, you have to fight-" She pointed her hand at his face. Her energy knocked him down to kneel in front of her. _

_"No, listen to me." She pulled the blade from her pocket and cut at his arms. She layed him back onto the ground and lifted his shirt slightly. "No one hurts me anymore."_

_"Aelita!" Yumi cried. 'Oh no, what happened?' She knelt down next to Odd's mutilated body. Cuts crisscrossed all over his skin. It looked even paler than usual. She looked around to see blood on the ground and no sign of Aelita. _

_"Yumi, we have company," Ulrich warned as X.A.N.A's monsters approached them._

_"Where's Aelita?"_

_"Right here." Yumi blacked out from Aelita's attack. Ulrich was stunned by the sight. She used her dark energy and hit Ulrich with all her might. He layed sprawled next to Yumi and Odd. _

_Aelita fainted. Jeremie dragged Odd away._

_XxXxXxXxXxXxX_

Aelita stirred then sat up with a start.

"I hurt Odd?" she mumbled out.

"Now you see. Aelita, you can't control this darkness. You took the pain and turned it into rage. That raged turned into the dark energy you used against your own friends."

"But he said- he said Jeremie..." She looked at her shaking palms.

"Come Aelita. Let's leave. After Lyoko is destroyed, I can train you, and we can rule the world together."

XxXxXxXxXxX

"So why weren't we devirtualized?" Ulrich asked, helping Yumi up.

"This is it," he responded,"the secret section of Carthage. She led us here." Ulrich and Yumi looked around. The data began fading slowly around them.

"So Aelita is alive right?" Yumi asked. Odd sighed. Suddenly he looked very tired.

"I hope so."

"Well we don't have time to just sit around guys, we gotta' get movin'," Ulrich said. Just as he finished speaking an alarm sounded and the whole sector flashed red.

"Warning, deletion sequence 95% complete."

"Woah!" Yumi caught herself as the ground started to shake violently. The warriors braced themselves for falling objects. As soon as the ground stopped shaking, they started moving along the path quickly.

"So what are we looking for?" Ulrich asked breathing heavily.

"The tower," Odd replied.

"Uh oh, looks like we've got company." Yumi pointed ahead where a horde of monsters blocked their path.

"Hang on Aelita," Odd whispered.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Yumi caught her fan when it returned to her. The warriors stood panting heavily as the last of the monsters was defeated.

"I don't see it!" she cried exhausted. Odd sighed in frustration.

"I don't see Aelita, I don't see the tower, maybe it was just a rumor."

"Guys, we can't just give up now. We've already come this far. We're all coming back together, remember?" Ulrich encouraged.

"Warning, deletion sequence at 97%."

"Well we better get going then," Odd smiled.

XxXxXxXxXxX

A/N: CLIFFHANGER! Hahaha. Yes I know it's been a while guys, I finally got around to writing this. I promise the next update will be soon after this. I still really love this story. As always, reviews are very much appreciated! Oh, also, to all my readers I have rewritten chapter 18 so it is alot better in my opinion. Go read it! Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Lyoko, it wouldn't be over if I did.


	21. The Verge

Aelita walked along behind X.A.N.A in a daze. She hadn't remembered any of that. The others hadn't told her what happened either.

_All I seem to be able to do is hurt them._

She shook her head. And now, what was she doing now?

"_You have such potential Aelita. Beings like you and I, well, we are superior to say the least. We don't need others. They've surely given up on you anyway. Imagine what we could accomplish! The entire world would bow at our feet! With that much power, we wouldn't need anyone."_

"No," Aelita's voice came out quietly and, at first, she hadn't recognized it as her own. "No, you're wrong. My friends would never give up on me." She felt as though it weren't her saying this. It had to be another Aelita, one much farther away. But her voice continued. "I need them as much as they need me. I would NEVER give up on them." Her voice started to rise and this time she was sure it was coming from her own mouth. "Power means nothing to me! I wouldn't trade anything for it. You, X.A.N.A, you may not know what it's like but, but I do."

_"What makes you so sure they would want you back even if you did manage to return? How do you know they wouldn't turn their backs on you?" _Aelita faltered a little. She kept her eyes fixed on the ground. He grinned at the sight. "_You see, they've made you weak! It disgusts me. I on the other hand, could make you stronger my dear," _each word dripped off his tongue with sweet venom,"_Think of the possibilities!"_

_"_All I'm hearing, is power and greed! I should trust you because you say so? Like I'd believe you wouldn't turn on me faster than your double edged tongue could spit lies. I'll tell you what, the day I give in to you, and turn my back on my friends, ha, well that'd be the day I die." Her hands lit up with their natural pink energy. A good natured smirk played on her lips. "That afternoon in the woods, that was the last time you will ever control me."

"Very well, I'll take you by force, princess."

XxXxXxXxXxX

"Did you guys feel that pulsation?" Yumi asked. Odd and Ulrich exchanged looks. "There, again!"

"We'll follow you," Ulrich assured. Yumi lead the way in a sprint and Ulrich followed close behind. Odd lagged far in the back. When he could no longer see them, he stopped. Something had been calling out to him. He could hear it clear as day calling his name. Odd may have been naive, but he wasn't stupid. He stayed wary and told himself not to get too comfortable, it could be a trap. Odd followed the sound cautiously. A sudden chill ran down his spine and he shivered. It felt as if something was very wrong although he couldn't imagine what considering all the previous events. That's when the vision came to him.

_X.A.N.A threw Aelita against the wall. She lay unconcious and he picked her up. He walked to the edge of the platform and looked down at the digital sea below. Useless._

Odd started at the end of the vision. He tried to keep calm but his mind was racing with bad thoughts. The vision had only lasted a few seconds and gave away nothing as far as location. He ran his hands through his hair.

"_Odd," _that sweet voice called again,"_come find me." _It sounded like a siren song, but he had no choice. He gave in. He followed the voice helplessly wondering the whole time if maybe Ulrich and Yumi had found Aelita or the tower yet. A familiar, beautiful laugh filled the air. Odd took off in a sprint.

His lungs felt as if they were about to burst but he didn't stop. His legs wanted to give out, but he pushed on. Suddenly, the sounds stopped. It happened so abruptly Odd wanted to cry out in frustration. He stopped running and looked around. He felt as if he had been led deeper into the nothing that was Carthage. It was all in fact a trick to lead him astray from the path, and he fell for it. He'd wanted so badly to believe it wasn't. His actions couldn't have been in vain. But it seemed they were. The siren's song worked and Lyoko would be completely erased. How he doubted so easily.

A pink flash of light from the corner of his eye caught his attention. Before he could react, he found himself thrown across the floor.

"Odd!" And the voice he had followed, the one he'd been longing to hear since it'd dissappeared, rang through the air. "I knew you'd find me!" She ran up to him and got down on her knees. "I am so sorry." She pulled him into a tight embrace. He didn't even care to ask why. Odd relished in the moment. He inhaled, taking in her sweet scent. His arms found their way around her waist. She placed a light kiss on his lips.

"Aelita, I thought-"

"Nevermind that, we have to take down X.A.N.A and find that tower!" She pulled him up quickly. X.A.N.A's dark energy covered the sector. It began to glow red.

Warning! Deletion sequence at 98% completion.

"Aelita! Come out!" He cried. Odd took her hand. They ran in the opposite direction for the meantime. Avoiding X.A.N.A but looking for Yumi and Ulrich.

"Hold on." Aelita stopped Odd. Her hands came together as if she were about to pray. Blocks moved to create a path like staircase. They began their ascent.

When they'd finally made their way to the top, Aelita scanned the area. Odd couldn't take his eyes off Aelita. He was too afraid she might dissapear or run off again. "There!" she said. Odd followed her gaze. Yumi and Ulrich were making their way up on the opposite side. She ran to meet them but was stopped short.

"Thought you could avoid me did you?" A look of horror crossed odd's face. They had been found. Aelita's face couldn't have been more confident. Her hands lit up again. Odd pushed his emotions to the back seat and stood by her side.

"We've got your back Aelita, Odd!" they heard Ulrich shout from the other side.

"Well, now you all can go together!" He lunged towards Aelita who swiped a shield over herself. Odd jumped over her and shot laser arrows at him. Yumi threw her fans which hit him with dead on accuracy. Ulrich leapt into the air and slashed through him with his katana. It seemed as though he'd fallen, but the Lyoko warriors knew better.

"Pitiful." He stood and the ground shook violently. His arms lifted to which chunks of the sector did the same. He hurled them at the warriors who by luck dodged them. He called upon his loyal underlings who rushed to his aid.

The battlefield was an unfair advantage. All the odds were against them. They were greatly outnumbered. X.A.N.A had been far from through. Hordes of monsters surrounded them and he used his dark energy to strengthen them.

"This could all be over if you hand over the girl." They made no move. "Very well." His hands clenched and the once non moving monsters began to close in.

Aelita used as much of her energy as she could to defeat them but they kept coming in endless amounts. Alone, the four were powerless. As the others were distracted, X.A.N.A moved in on Aelita and threw a great amount of dark energy at her. She fell to the ground. He picked up her limp body and threw it at the wall for good measure. She became unconcious. He picked her up for what he thought would be the last time and carried her to the edge of the platform near the digital sea.

"Useless," he muttered. Just as he was about to drop her, Yumi's fan connected with his back. Odd shot laser arrows at him until he let go of her. Ulrich had already been on his way with super sprint and caught her. He brought her back then placed her in Odd's arms.

"She's useless to you now, don't you see warriors, I've won!"

Warning! Deletion sequence at 99% completion.

He gave a dark chuckle at his assumed accomplishment then stopped. They all laid their hands on Aelita's heart. Eyes closed, concentrating. He watched in awe as their strength took the form of pure energy and made its way into her.

She stood. Her head lifted and a determined smile graced her face.

"This ends now." He gasped in horror as Aelita brought her hands up in their usual prayer like stance. Her pink energy consumed the whole sector. The monsters were wiped out immediately. X.A.N.A was swallowed by her energy. She listened to his cry of agony rip through the air like her energy ripped through him. The darkness melted and the power escaped. The sector returned to normal.

The four watched as dazzling light rained down. A tower built itself in the middle of the floor. Aelita wasted no time. She walked in and smiled at the familiar sight. The rings lit up as she stepped on each one. In the center, she hovered to the second platform. A screen appeared and she placed her hand on it. It prompted a password. She typed in one word: Zero.

The data surrounding her in the tower started to fall. She smiled, because she didn't know where the return trip would take them, or if X.A.N.A had been defeated for sure. But she did know where she would be when it happened.

Her safe place was calling.

XxXxXxXxX

A/N: next chapter is the last. I can't believe it. Thanks to everyone who's been with me so far. It's almost over.

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Lyoko, but it is continuing. :)


	22. The Safe Place  Here In Your Arms

The Safe Place - The Final Chapter

_Here In Your Arms_

Aelita opened her eyes as the world finished being engulfed by the strange blinding white light that followed every return to the past sequence. Her irises focused, and their pupils dilated to normal size. She heard the sound of the trees before she saw them. Bright colored leaves littered the floor and few hung by threads on the dying trees. A breeze wrapped itself welcomingly around her like a friend giving a warm embrace. She grinned. Then something pale passed in front of her field of vision. 'Odd,' she thought.

"Aelita? What's up with you, you've been acting strange lately," a condescending tone- a knowing, smug tone met her ears. The glimmer in her eyes died down a little. Business had to be taken care of first.

"Jeremie," she turned to look at him, sitting on the stone bench by himself. He had an amused look on his face but his posture said he was bored. Tired even, of talking? No, of playing.

"Look if it's because of the dance, I brought you out here to ask you-"

"No, Jeremie. That isn't it." The wicked smile from the Aelita on Lyoko surfaced a final time. Her usually emerald eyes darkened. "I've really let you control me." Jeremie stayed silent. "I just made it so easy for you. Listen, I'm not going to waste my breath on you. I know what's been going on behind my back, and I know you already asked Alora to the dance. I know what you've been planning and hiding. I may be blind at times, but I'm not stupid." Jeremie stood and reached out to grasp her arm.

"Where would you-" She yanked her arm away.

"Still you try to deny it?" She bit out, teeth clenched. "It's not there anymore Jeremie! It's not oh- fucking- kay anymore!" Jeremie flinched. "You stopped loving me a long-," her voice broke and she bit back tears," a long time ago." Her eyes glimmered but she didn't let one tear fall. The anger and frustration was made clear. She would not give him the satisfaction of seeing her pain. "Well, I hope you understand, I'm not who I used to be. I'm not that same weak little princess you used to know. Jeremie, there are so many other guys out there that would appreciate me. Appreciate a girl like me. Guys who won't put me down and tell me I don't amount to anything." Jeremie stayed silent for a moment and it seemed he had nothing to say. At this Aelita was truly surprised. No last word on the subject, no pleading for a second chance, nothing. Aelita sighed. He still wouldn't fight for her. She turned to leave but lingered. She wasn't done, the conversation seemed far from over.

"Like who, Aelita? Tell me." And with that one sentence, the woods around them seemed to get colder and larger. "Who would give up their life for you like I have? No one. You think those people care about you?" He chuckled, that same dark chuckle that gave away his true intentions. "Go on, leave then. If you think you can find someone better, go ahead. Actually, I should be thanking you. I no longer have to burden myself with thoughts of you." His lips curled up into a smile.

"As far as you're concerned, I am no longer your worry." Aelita's tone was sharp and spiteful. "The thing is you can't hurt me anymore. You say what you mean and let the truth spill. I'll let your own words haunt you. You want me to leave, fine. Deal. Just remember what you said and how you said it... You caused me so much pain, but for some reason, I don't hate you. I feel sorry for you." His face dropped. His eyebrows knit together.

"Sorry, for me? I should feel sorry for you."

Aelita shook her head. She turned on her heels, having spoke her peace, and walked away. She held her head high and proud. When she was sure she was out of his sight, she broke out into a full sprint.

Jeremie stood silently. And just as Aelita had realized, he realized for the first time. He was all alone.

XxXxXxXCode LyokoXxXxXxX

Aelita panted heavily in the entrance of the school. Her friends would most likely be in the cafeteria but she still had loose ends. She gazed at the glass doors for a minute and could actually picture herself running out of them. How must she have looked? She put her hand on the door handle and pushed gently. There was no longer a sense of urgency to get through them like she would have felt later that night. Goosebumps prickled her skin.

There was the ever present sense of fear ticking quietly in the back of her mind. (Tick, Tick, TICK, TICK!) She supposed it was a traumatizing event. One that would surely haunt her. But she wouldn't know until later, long after being pronounced Mrs. Della Robbia. When she would lay in her shared bed with her husband, she would rarely slip into that nightmare. On those nights, he would kiss her fingertips to soothe her and pull her body into his own. But it was a rare occurence. Aelita wasn't one to linger in the past too long.

She pulled on the ends of her hair softly as she often did when she was in thought. It was longer now. It made her think of the new Aelita. The one who didn't dwell on the past, and let people control her. She smiled at the thought.

The hallways were filled with students and the usual din of gossip between them. Aelita waved to people she knew who were obviously shocked by the action. She hadn't interacted with her other friends since she and Jeremie had started dating. The gossip line instantly replenished. 'Let them talk,' she thought,'talk is cheap.' And with a nod of her head she continued down the hall.

Aelita raised her knuckles to the dopr in front of her and rapped lightly. She stood back and listened to the movement behind it. The door opened just a crack and an eye peered out. The eyebrow above it raised in obvious surprise. The door opened wider.

"Aelita? What are you doing here?" Sissi's high pitched voice asked. She stepped out into the hallway with her. Aelita moved forward and hugged the other girl tightly.

"Thank you," was all she said. Sissi blushed.

"Don't mention it." Aelita pulled away. Sissi stared at Aelita for a moment then said,"What are friends for?" Aelita smiled lightheartedly. She was ready to leave but Sissi caught her by surprise in a sisterly embrace. "You deserve so much better," she whispered and let go. Aelita stood in the hallway long after Sissi had entered her room staring dazedly at where the other girl had been. A small lump caught in her throat.

"Thanks," she whispered to no one.

XxXxXxX The Safe Place XxXxXxX

Aelita ran up the stairs happily, taking the steps two at a time. Her heart was overflowing with emotions. She passed the infirmary without a second glance. Sub conciously she assured herself that night and the few after never happened. If she were to walk back and open the door to the infirmary the glass medicine cabinets would not be shattered, her blood would not be on the floor, and the chart with the list of injuries a mile long would not be there. Only a smiling Nurse Yolanda.

When she came to the door, her heart beat faster than when she was running up the stairs. She could hear it in her ears but not the dangerous way like before. This time she wasn't hyperventilating.

She placed her fingers on the knob and pushed it gently. The door swung open slowly. Odd stared up at her from his position on the bed and her heart fluttered. He sat up.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready for-" Aelita took one long stride and dropped to her knees in front of him. "Aelita?" he chuckled. She pulled his hands from his side and placed them on her face. A small blush spread over his cheeks. "Umm..." His face looked disbelieving. As if someone were about to tell him this was all a joke. Aelita stood up long enough to push him back and then laid on top of him. Her hair fell around his face and shadowed her own. She stradled him easy enough in their position and moved his hands from her face to her hips. Odd looked at her questioningly but waited for her to speak.

Aelita relished the silence a bit longer. She stared into Odd's eyes before finally speaking. "Why didn't you tell me I was the one who hurt you and the others?" A small flash of hurt glimmered in her eyes.

"Because, it wasn't you. That's why Ulrich and Yumi saw a Scyphozoa. I saw the dark Aelita."

"I'm so sorry," she whispered. Odd wiped a few tears that had fallen, suddenly, from her face. She laughed. "I've finally figured it out." Aelita leaned down and worried Odd's lips. They kept their eyes open until she couldn't tease any longer and kissed him passionately. Odd's hands slipped under her shirt and pulled it over. They stopped kissing. She sat straight up on him. He admired the pink and white laced bra. Normally, Aelita was very sure thinking back on it, she would have felt very self concious. Odd's gaze just made her feel perfect.

He ran his hands up the sides of her body. He placed his hand over her smooth tummy. Aelita thought it felt like that one song. A teenage dream for sure. No regrets. He sat up with Aelita straddling him all the while and kissed her softly, innocently. He moved down her neck and kissed the spot between her breasts. Aelita ran her hands through his hair. He grabbed his purple half hoodie from the edge of the bed and pulled it over her.

"Wanna' play in the rain?" He asked softly, smiling. Aelita looked out the window and sure enough, it was pouring out.

"I'll race you." She jumped up and took off. Odd followed close behind. These were the moments she wanted to live for. Not the lust, but the romance, the little touches that meant everything. She pushed the door open and ran out into the rain. Within a few seconds she was drenched. Her hair clung to her face like her clothes clung to her body. Odd watched in the doorway as she closed her eyes and raised her head to the sky. He was startled when she suddenly yelled out furiously. The thunder echoed her cry. Odd walked to her. Aelita looked at him.

"Hi," she whispered.

"I love you Aelita."

In that moment, Aelita had a revelation. Her Safe Place was not the school with its tall, proud black gates, it was not the gym that she had wished to reach so badly that fateful night, nor was it the infirmary. It wasn't Lyoko, or even the towers. The Safe Place, her Safe Place, was here. Right here, in Odd's arms.

He held her in the rain and gave her a chaste kiss. She tasted of cherries, he tasted sweet. In that very moment, Aelita felt the safest she had ever been.

"I love you, too, Odd."

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

A/N: It is finally over. I'm actually very sad. This is the very first story I published on here and I never thought I would finish it. I am very happy with the way it turned out and I'm also very happy I had so many kind reviews and fans following this. We made it. Thanks to everyone who supported The Safe Place and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. This is my absolute favorite chapter. Thanks again!

Much Love,

NobodyheartXIII

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Lyoko, just The Safe Place. 3


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